The Game Plan
by ThirdtotheLeft
Summary: Time flies. Dreams change. Maturity slaps and stings you like the bitch she is and while you're fighting with those issues, the condom silently breaks. Zoro and Sanji are living a happy and happening married life when they are surprised with God's blessings on their doorstep, thanks to Sanji. Collab work with Zosanlaw
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is a collaboration with the wonderful Zosanlaw, the very first for both of us. This story is based on the popular movie The Game Plan with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, though we will keep it mostly original. Hope you guys enjoy it! :)**

The All Blue was the best residency complex in Grand Town with forty floors and four apartments mapped out on each floor. Every five floors, the apartment design and facilities were upgraded. It is important to mention that only two types of people lived in the building. One, high officials and two, filthily rich people. The whole complex was designed by the renowned Mr. Cutty Flam or, as the residents of the twenty fourth floor, apartment B knew as, Franky.

The phone on the white lacquer coffee table top in the spacious living room buzzed. It was a beautiful living room. The floor was tiled with white porcelain marble and the sofa set appeared to be a part of it, circling the coffee table. The sunlight shone into the room from the full length glass windows, lighting every stainless surface and also the ruffled beige comforter covering the couple who had fallen asleep on the sofa. Judging by the naked torso of the two men cuddling under the comforter, it would seem like last night was definitely one they enjoyed.

The phone buzzed again, this time a little longer. Sanji groaned into Zoro's tan pectorals, scrunching his eyes when sunrays hit him as he shifted over the snoring form of his husband. They fell asleep on the sofa again? A small smile quirked on his lips as he remembered the previous night. The movie they had decided to watch, _The A Team_ , was not the least bit romantic, but they never actually needed a reason to connect their lips or pull their shirts off each other. He took in the clothes scattered around the makeshift bed and a soft blush warmed his cheeks.

The phone buzzed rather pointedly again and he stretched his arm to reach it without waking up Zoro. What time was it? Who was calling this early? He pressed the answer button.

"..'Lo?" he answered, voice slurred with sleep

" _Sanji? It's Chopper. What are you doing?"_ the gruff voice of their friend sounded from the speaker. Sanji noted a hint of urgency and blinked himself to an aware state.

"Just woke up. Is something wrong?"

" _Ah... no, no. Nothing is wrong. Can you get here asap?"_

Sanji frowned. Chopper was giving some mixed signals and that definitely meant something was up; though if it was too serious, Chopper wouldn't hide it, he figured.

"Where are you?"

" _Home."_

"I'll be there in forty minutes."

" _Okay."_

The line was cut and Sanji shifted again, resting his head on Zoro's shoulder, listening to the soft snores in his left ear. He had gotten used to them, to the point where the snores were like music to his ears. The calloused body pressed against his own lithe frame was his own personal furnace and the ring shinning in the sunlight on his finger was his only adornment.

He got an arm up, ruffling the spiky green hair of his bear of a husband and planted a small kiss under the chiselled jaw line. Zoro grunted mid snore and snapped his mouth shut. Sanji chuckled and pressed a kiss on the supple lips. Zoro was not fully awake yet and Sanji knew he would sleep more.

Zoro mumbled something incomprehensible against his lips. Four years of practice was enough to let Sanji know what he was saying. He hugged the man and nuzzled into his hairline.

"Good morning to you too," he murmured. "I have to leave. Chopper's calling me."

Zoro's arm tightened around his torso as he fluttered his one good eye open, still drowned in drowsiness. "Everything alright?"

"Yes." Sanji placed his lips on the marimo's and melted into the slow morning kiss. Zoro responded willingly, pulling Sanji on top of him and hands squeezed the ass he had married. Sanji let his hands travel and nest in the green hair. "He just asked me to come over." He lingered on the tempting lips for another few seconds before sighing and sitting up. Zoro pouted under him and he grinned at him. "I'll be back soon. Probably before you wake up."

Zoro's hands still refused to lighten their grip on his butt cheeks so he bent down again and licked the tan skin on his neck, feeling the soft throb of his pulse on his lips. "When I get back, you can tie me up and do whatever you want. We'll switch off our cells. No one will interfere. And I heard the neighbours are leaving for a week. We can be as loud as we want to be." Sanji crooned into his ear, tugging on one of the golden dangling earrings with his teeth.

Sanji knew Zoro wanted nothing more than to pin him to the sofa and edge him to his climax right then and there but the promise of uninterrupted, submissive sex was just enough to hold him at bay. His grip tightened before loosening and Sanji indulged himself in another morning kiss before detangling from the tan limbs. He stood stark naked and walked over to the windows, giving Zoro a good full view of his bare ivory tight arse. Zoro groaned to himself, regretting the loss of his hold on the gorgeous muscled rump.

Sanji drew the curtains on the broad daylight, dimming the room so Zoro could sleep more. Said man punched the cushions around him as he willed himself to sleep again, half hard by the tactics pulled by his blond husband. Sanji crouched and collected the clothes littered around them and gave Zoro a quick peck on the forehead before hurrying to bathe.

He cursed himself for saying forty minutes. Their bathroom was, to summarize in a word, posh. And it went without saying that once you set foot in it, you wanted to take your time admiring yourself in the long vanity mirror or just stand under the shower as if you were bathing under the Angel Falls. The Jacuzzi might as well be the Devil's Pool and with the waterproof speakers connected to the mobile bluetooth, the place could be called a second home. Sanji closed his eyes and rushed through the shower, allowing the previous day's work to rinse itself off him and applying shampoo to his scalp for barely thirty seconds before rinsing it off.

Five minutes of mussing over his hair to hide his hideously curled eyebrows later, Sanji was setting another light kiss in Zoro's hair. He had fallen asleep and Sanji grinned at the sight. He held an apple between his teeth as he slipped into his everyday black jacket, the leather falling with practiced ease on his white v-neck tee and matched with his black jeans. He slipped on his Steve Madden loafers and grabbed the Marlboro sticks from the modern crystal bowl.

He had taken longer than expected in the shower, but luckily for him, Chopper only lived twenty two floors below them. It came in handy having an outstanding doctor so close by, especially with Zoro's uncanny ability of getting himself injured. He lit his cigarette in the elevator, sighing deeply when the nicotine filled his lungs. Zoro had strict rules of smoking inside the apartment. He usually had to sit near the fireplace or sneak one inside the guest bathroom. He pressed the button that would send him down to the second floor, where Chopper lived.

It didn't take long to arrive at Chopper's doorstep. He was pleasantly surprised when, upon knocking, the door opened to reveal Nami, dressed in skinny jeans and an Anne Klein wrap. She looked bedazzling in them, long ginger hair ending with bouncy ringlets played with her slim waist and the jeans fit perfectly on her long legs.

"Good morning, Nami dear. How are you?" Sanji greeted brightly.

"Come in , Sanji," Nami said, avoiding his gaze.

Sanji frowned; first Chopper, and now Nami was acting strange. Was something wrong? But Chopper had assured him there wasn't. A nagging feeling creeped its way up his spine and nestled on his shoulders.

"Is something the matter, Nami?" Sanji asked seriously, following her inside. Chopper's apartment was laid out similar to his, though it was a bit smaller. It also looked more bare, since the young doctor had only moved to All Blue a couple of months ago, unlike Zoro and Sanji who had been living here for the past two years.

"I...I think it's best for you to see for yourself," Nami replied, crossing her arms.

Sanji's frown deepened. "Where's Chopper?"

"Right here," Chopper called, walking in from the hall Sanji knew lead to his bedroom. "Hey, Sanji. Sorry for worrying you; but this is important."

"You're seriously weirding me out right now," Sanji said, looking between Nami's serious face and Chopper's slightly apologetic one. "What happened?"

"It's kind of difficult to explain," Chopper answered. He seemed extremely uncomfortable.

Chopper was a jovial man. Tall and buff with sandy brown hair set away from his face and expressive dark brown eyes. He looked quite dashing despite the small bags under his eyes. But the smile that usually made his patients faint was missing and that was getting on Sanji's nerves. "I was coming home late from work… or early, I should say, since it was about two hours ago.. when I saw two children in trouble. They were...being accosted by some men and..."

"What? Where? Are they okay?" Sanji asked hurriedly, cutting in. He didn't know how this had anything to do with him, but that didn't mean he wasn't worried.

"They're fine, Sanji," Nami sighed. "Chopper drove the men away. I saw them on my way to Usopp's place."

"That's great," Sanji said. "So…" He stood between them for a minute and when no one tried explaining the situation to him, he continued, "I'm sorry, I still don't understand what's wrong."

"Why don't you go meet them?" Nami said suddenly. "They're in Chopper's room."

"What? Nami... Why didn't you call their parents? Or the police?Or even your girlfriend?" Sanji asked. When Nami didn't reply, he turned to look at Chopper.

"It's _complicated_ ," Chopper repeated. "It's best if you just...talk to them."

Sanji's worry was increasing. Chopper and Nami were acting extremely strange; secrecy didn't suit Chopper well and it felt strange to see them both so evasive. He still didn't know what was going on, but it was probably best to just do as they said and meet these kids.

He nodded and started walking down the hall to Chopper's bedroom, Nami and Chopper's conversation following him.

" _I'm glad you didn't punch him."_

" _Yes, about that. The interest on your loan just went up."_

" _Ehhh!?"_

Sanji blocked the two out. Why on earth did Nami want to punch him? Everyone in their friend circle knew better than to anger Nami. She looked charming and cute but could pack a punch that sent Luffy crumpling to the ground and that was a feat in itself. But that action was usually triggered by some immature action from their end and right now, he had no clue what he did wrong.

He reached Chopper's bedroom and almost walked into the locked door. Rubbing his nose from where he hit it, he raised another hand and knocked politely.

He heard hurried shushing from inside and raised his eyebrows when an adorably cute voice tried to sound authoritative as it spoke, "Are you Mr. Sanji Black?"

It was definitely a girl's voice; sweet and high, a mild soprano that sounded pleasant to the ear and tugged on your heart strings. Sanji grinned.

"Yes, it is. And who might you be?"

There was a pause for about ten seconds in which Sanji stared at the doorknob intently.

"Do you have curly eyebrows?" The same voice spoke from the other side, all authority lost and curiosity taking its place.

Sanji's visible eye eyebrow? Was Chopper pulling a prank on him? If so, it was in poor taste. Maybe the doctor was the one in need of a punch.

"Well?" the voice on the other side urged.

"Yes," he muttered through gritted teeth.

The door lock clicked open and the door was pulled back. The curtains were drawn and the air conditioning was on. The LED bulbs lighted the room reasonably. Sanji's eye fell on a boy, around five years old sitting on the bed spread with both his legs crossed, wearing nothing but a pair of black boy shorts and in the process of putting on a white sweatshirt. He had blond hair that fell on his face and covered his left eye, the visible eye topped with an arched curly brow. Sanji froze where he stood. It was like looking at himself when he was five.

The girl who had opened the door trotted up to the bed and climbed next to the boy, also in boy shorts, only these were coral green and a white sweatshirt identical to the one the boy had stopped trying to pull over his head. She was blonde too and the hair framed her face roughly, showing off both the curled eyebrows.

They both had ocean blue eyes. Ocean blue eyes that reflected the lights in the room and captured the attention of anyone who looked into them, reflecting their innocence and providing a peek into their souls. The same ocean blue eyes that Sanji was graced with, which seemed ready to pop out of their sockets as he looked at the twins sitting on Choppers bed from the doorway. The cigarette butt tipped off the petrified lips and fell between the polished black shoes standing on the mahogany flooring.

"Hello, Mr Sanji Black. This is Andrian," she pointed to the boy scowling at Sanji, "and I am Hotomi." She smiled at him warmly. "We are your children and we want to live with you."


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter Two  
**_ _ **Abandoned**_

Zoro shifted on the sofa. The heat that clung on to him when he was sleeping was now on the second floor of the building and the sofa was just not that comfortable without the body pressed onto him. He opened his eyes and reached for his IPhone 6 gold to check the time: 9:40 AM.

He threw back the covers and walked to the kitchen. Sanji liked to cook, it was his second favorite thing to do after photography, and their kitchen definitely showed it. When they had first gotten the apartment, the living room had been the biggest room, with the kitchen a much smaller size. But Sanji had fallen in love with the view, so they had decided to extend the kitchen and make the living room a bit smaller, giving plenty of room in the kitchen to add a wide kitchen island and a six-burner gas stove instead of the traditional four-burner. The floors were marble, as were the countertops, but the cabinets were mahogany, giving the entire kitchen a much warmer and live-in feel.

Of course, Zoro didn't really care for things like decor, so most of the beauty of the kitchen was lost on him. Instead, he grabbed a glass from one of the wall cabinets and poured himself some water before he trudged to the bathroom to brush his teeth.

It was when he stood in front of the mirror that he realized he was standing still naked, causing last night's memory to flow in and remind him of the promise Sanji made before leaving. He grinned at himself, the white bubbles frothing in his mouth and covering his lower lip. The time Sanji and he got to spend together was limited because of his job which only made the off-season all the more important. It was the only time of the year that Zoro could devote all of his time to his husband, the only time he had to show the man he had married how much he loved him.

He rinsed his mouth and proceeded to the gym, picking his favorite grey sweat pants from the hooks behind the bathroom door. He might as well workout while he waited for Sanji. He knew the blonde liked watching him after he was done.

Sanji paced in Chopper's bedroom, his long legs barely needing four steps to cover the distance between the two walls before turning around and retracing them in each round.

Chopper and Nami were wedged together on the recliner chair, heads moving as their eyes were fixed on his oscillating form, as were Hitomi's who was sitting on the bed, her feet dangling off the side. Andrian, on the other hand, was now lying down - Chopper said he had received a kick in to the shin, nothing too serious but it would definitely hurt to walk on it for the next couple of days.

Sanji's face was scrunched up in concentration. He tried remembering, assaulting his mind to recall if any of the girls he had dated ever told him they were pregnant. He poked his brain to remember if he had ever been unsafe but the last unprotected sex he had - with a girl - was eight years ago, when he turned eighteen and was too drunk to think before it happened.

But the kids here were two months shy of turning five. And he had been with a few girls in the ideal time period, having had a terrible breakup and indulging in some guilty rebounds. There was something nagging him at the back of his mind. He knew he was missing something obvious, but the more he concentrated on it, the more it buried itself deeper in his subconscious.

He turned to look at Hitomi , instantly losing his uptightness and asked politely, "You really don't remember?"

She shook her head. "No. We have been in different foster homes. Don't think we were ever with our mother."

Sanji looked at her intently. He felt horrible, to say the least. There was no doubt that the twins were his. They had his eyes, hair, and not to forget the curly brows. Hell! When the girl smiled, she had the same sweet smile he gave to his clients when he was trying to be polite and Andrian had his scowl.

He took a deep breath, turning away from the blue flames that were trying to melt him and practically already half way through the process. He reached for his cigarette pack as he resumed his hustling. Pressing the deathstick between his lips, he reached for the lighter in the other pocket when Chopper cleared his throat. He turned to look at him warily and the doctor arched an eyebrow at him before pointedly looking at the kids.

Great. Fantastic. First the marimo makes smoking rules at home and now Chopper was following his lead. He huffed and returned the lighter to his pocket and stuffed the cigarette in his other one.

He wanted to understand the situation. He wanted to know who the mother was and why she never told Sanji about the children. Sanji was a romantic at heart and an absolute gentleman if you ignored the pervertedness. If he knew that a lady was bearing his kids, he would have…

"We know you don't want us." This was the first time Andrian spoke since Sanji had met the two. His voice was so similar to Hitomi's, it took a moment for Sanji to realize he was the one who had spoken. His voice _was_ a couple of octaves lower, but nothing too noticeable. Sanji startled to a stop and looked at him, surprised.

The boy sat up, wincing a little. Sanji took an involuntary step forward, worried. Andrian looked at Sanji straight in the eye, one ocean meeting the other. There was a dark turmoil in Andrian's eyes, something no child his age should ever have to bear, but something Sanji was familiar with. He didn't like the way it darkened the blue of Andrian's iris, turning the electric blueness of their eyes into a darker, slate-blue."We know we're unwelcome. If you don't want us to stay, just say it. We'll go back to the house we came from."

"I…" Sanji cleared his throat, "I.. don'.. what?" He was shocked into stammering. He didn't know what to say or do or how to react to the words being thrown at him.

Hitomi looked at him sympathetically but kept quiet in silent agreement. Andrian spoke again, "We know. We understand. It's why we've been sent to various foster homes, isn't it? You didn't want us and neither did our mother." The sadness behind the words hit Sanji with enough force to take a step back.

Hitomi shifted on the bed to sit next to her brother. "We saw you in a magazine. They had a photo of you as a child and you looked exactly like Andrian. We… I decided to meet you, some way or the other. But now that we have, we can go back. It's okay if you don't want us." Her eyes betrayed the strong facade she was holding. They looked… broken.

His feet carried him to the bed and he slipped off his shoes before climbing on to sit in front of the two kids. "Nami, Chopper." He didn't turn to look at them, eyes still locked with Hitomi's. "Could you give us some privacy?" Nami and Chopper were on their feet in an instant and they left the room immediately. Chopper squeezed his shoulder in silent support before closing the door behind him.

Sanji offered one hand to Hitomi who looked at it hesitantly before slipping her dainty hand on his palm. Sanji closed his hand around her's, his heart beating frantically at the first touch with his daughter. He looked at Andrian who was still scowling at him. Sanji smiled a little, the boy really reminded him of himself when he was a child. He understood that at this moment, he had to be true to both of them.

He sighed and hung his head low, his back curled in on himself. "This, is a lot to take in," he spoke to the sheets. "I.. I didn't know that I had… that I was a father." He took a deep breath as he admitted the fact to himself for the first time, trying to reassure himself; feeling Hitomi trying to squeeze his hand in the hopes of achieving the same. Sweet. She was sweet. He returned the pressure as he looked back up at the two, a small smile pulling on his lips.

"If I knew… If I had even the smallest of clues or even a hint, I would have done all I could to make you a part of my life. I would have wanted you." He looked at Adrian, the boy's scowl replaced by a small partition of the lips as he stared at Sanji. "I wouldn't have… If I had known, I would've raised you on my own. I don't know who your mother is and for that, I am sorry. I am so sorry that I wasn't there. But..." He looked at Hitomi , who was smiling a little, her eyes an exact replica of the shock reflected in her brother's eyes "...I am now, and I'm not leaving you alone."

It was important that they understood. He knew his complete explanation sounded aloof, wrapped in a plea for them to know, to understand what he was saying. It was true. If he knew, he would have taken full responsibility of them. He would have loved them and pampered them, given them the love every child in the world deserves.

The small hand slipped out of his as Hitomi flew at him, flinging her arms around his neck and clung to him. Andrian hesitated but a second later, coupled with a small wince, he got his arms around Sanji's neck as well, crushing him into the most enamored hug ever. Sanji's hands acted on their own accord, squeezing the two bundles of joy closer to him, shifting to sit on his knees, crouching low and practically dangling them on his neck.

He felt his shirt dampen on his shoulders and was not surprised to find his own eyes stinging with tears, threatening to shed. He bowed his head between to rest on their shoulders. He wanted this. He wanted the two to stay with him. It scared him but he wanted it. He wanted to raise these two children, his blood, his flesh, a part of his own soul.

His eyes snapped open. A part of his soul... Zoro!

"3998...3999...4000...4001...4002.."

Zoro had balanced his body in a perfect plank, the weight of his torso supported by his knuckles, as he worked on his abdominal muscles and pectorals with each push up while upbeat music blared through the speakers.

"What do I tell him? _How_ do I tell him?" Sanji was hyperventilating, sitting between Nami and Chopper on the beige sofa, palms pressed into his eyes and fingers clenching the skin in his scalp. Chopper was repeatedly telling him to calm down, and Nami rubbed a consoling hand on his back.

He had told the kids to get ready so he could take them home and then ran to Nami and Chopper, freaked out about how Zoro would react. He was so taken aback with the news of being a father of the two five year olds that he had practically forgotten he was married.

Zoro and Sanji had never discussed a thing about having kids. They were both men so they knew that they would either adopt or go for a surrogacy when they decided they were ready for kids. And now, they were had simply been gifted two children, courtesy of Sanji, and Zoro had no clue what was about to hit him. Would Zoro believe him? That Sanji knew nothing about this?

He groaned and pressed his face harder into his hands. He was about to ruin their marriage. Zoro was definitely going to leave. He could picture him leaving despite Sanji's fingers clawing into his biceps, begging for him to stay, face contorted in fury and a duffel bag slung over his shoulder… Fuck. Now he was overdramatically visualising the situation.

He didn't realize he had vocalized his thoughts until he heard Nami scoff.

"Oh, c'mon," she snorted. "Give Zoro a little credit. I'm sure he'll understand."

Would he? Did Zoro even want kids? Yeah, they always knew they had the option, but Zoro's career was finally taking off and kids were a huge responsibility. Sanji didn't have a choice, not that he wanted one; he had always dreamt of having children, but Zoro could always walk away.

"You need to talk to him," Nami continued firmly, grabbing his face to force eye-contact. "Sanji, _talk to him_."

He was still scared-and yes, right now he could admit that he was _scared_ , as much as his pride cringed at the word-but if anyone could convince him of doing something he didn't want to do, it was Nami. Besides, what else could he do?

"I….yes," he murmured absentmindedly, his mind still quietly panicking. "I'll...talk to him…"

"It really is for the best," Chopper piped in, his face pinched in awkward comfort. They were all out of their comfort-zone, to be honest. None of them had ever expected to be in this type of situation and Chopper, the youngest in the gang, clearly didn't know what advice to give. But it didn't matter. His presence was enough.

Sanji took in a deep breath and nodded. Yes, he needed to talk to Zoro. He could figure out everything else next. His feelings didn't matter. He didn't have the luxury anymore. Now what was important was Hitomi and Andrian. _They_ were the ones suffering, _they_ were the ones who had been cheated, _they_ were the only innocent ones in this whole mess.

They were what mattered now.

"We're ready!"

Sanji, Chopper, and Nami looked up to see Hitomi and Andrian by the hall. Andrian had an arm wrapped around his sister's shoulder for support, since his leg still probably hurt. They were dressed in the same clothes Chopper had given them, but Hitomi was holding a small backpack Sanji hadn't seen before.

That bag probably held all of their belongings.

Sanji thought of his apartment, of all of the luxuries he was used to while his _children_ lived in poverty...fuck, he was going to be good to them. He was going to make it up to them. He was going to be the best father he could ever be.

"Are we going home now?" Andrian asked. Sanji could still read some suspicion and a small amount of hostility from him, but it was clear his sister's excitement was rubbing off on him.

"Yes," Sanji said quickly, getting to his feet. "But before we go...I have something important to tell you…"

"What is it?" Andrian snapped, his suspicion doubling.

"Well…" Shit, this was awkward. How do you tell your children you're married? And with a guy? Okay, he needs to just spit out. Just like a band-aid, the quicker you pull the less pain you feel. "I'm married," he said quickly, and with the same breath, "His name is Zoro and right now he's probably working out in our apartment."

"You're _married_?" Hitomi exclaimed but before Sanji could freak out, her face broke into a wide smile copied by her brother. "Yesterday we had nothing, and now we have _two_ dads! Isn't this great, Andrian?"

"It's alright," Andrian shrugged, though Sanji could see the excitement sparking in his eyes.

He stared at both of them, surprised by their response. He hadn't expected their excitement, especially considering Andrian's feelings towards him. It was clear that they had been hurt, so the fact that they could already consider him, and even Zoro, a father only made him realize just how innocent they really were.

The look in their eyes made them look older than they really were, but they were, after all, _five years old_. Too young to be anything but innocent and naive.

The realization only made him want to protect them all the more and in that conviction, he found the courage to face Zoro.

"Well, let's go meet him," Sanji said with a smile, holding a hand out to Andrian. "Do you want me to carry you? That leg looks like it really hurts."

"Not really," Andrian shrugged, though he winced when Hitomi shifted. Sanji waited patiently, his smile never wavering, until Andrian hesitantly let go of his sister and grabbed Sanji's hand. He bent down a little to pick him up his _son_... he was picking up _his son_ … and he wrapped his arms around the slender body, supporting him from his hips.

Shit, he was so skinny. Sanji could practically feel his ribs through the thin shirt, and his heart ached in sympathy.

He felt something warm touch his hand and when he looked down, Hitomi was holding his hand and looking up at him with a teary smile.

"Thank you," she whispered at the exact moment Andrian sighed softly and laid his head on Sanji's shoulder, his warm breath tickling Sanji's neck.

Sanji swallowed thickly, hating the emotions that bubbled up and threatened to spill. No, he had to be strong. He looked up at Nami and Chopper, letting out a shaky breath when he met their eyes and read the tenderness in their gaze.

"It'll be okay," Nami assured him.

"I'll come check on Andrian tomorrow morning," Chopper added. "Right now what they really need is warm food, a warm bath, and a comfortable bed."

Sanji nodded quickly. "I'll do that," he promised earnestly. "Anything you say, Chopper."  
He wouldn't let anything harm the two small children in his arms. He didn't care what happened next, he just knew he didn't want to let go of them.

Whatever happened, Sanji would never let them be alone again.

Zoro paused halfway through the salmon ladder, his body hanging straight, listening intently for the tell-tale sound of a door closing. He grinned when he heard the quiet click and let go of the bar, landing lightly on the matted floor. He grabbed the bottle of water he had brought from the fridge before starting his workout, though it was room-temperature by now. He screwed the cap off and attached the bottle to his lips, tipping his head back and allowed the elixir of life to run down his parched throat, some of the water trickling down his neck in his eagerness.

He ignored the towel he had brought to wipe away his sweat, knowing how much Sanji liked seeing him just after a workout. He still had a lot of excess energy built up inside of him, energy that he knew just how to work off.

He grinned in anticipation and quickly made his way to the living room. As he approached, he could hear the familiar sounds of his husband in the kitchen and hurried before he could get distracted cooking.

He crossed the living room and walked up to the kitchen entrance, leaning against the frame and crossed his arms in a way he knew made his pecs bulge out and looked at his husband, the smile on his face vanishing when he saw the two children sitting on the counter.

Two blond children with identical curly brows and blue eyes.

Two children that were very obviously small replicas of his husband.

And then, even as he tried to blink away what could only possibly be a hallucination, one of the kids looked at him and frowned.

"Why is your hair green?" he asked, his eyebrow raised, "It looks stupid."

No. Not a hallucination. A dream.

The fact that it made no sense meant Zoro _had_ to be dreaming. Two younger versions of his husband, one of them speaking the same sentence Sanji said to him the very first time they met: this _had_ to be a dream.

The second carbon-copy glanced at him in curiosity and nodded. "Just like a marimo," it said-except _it_ was a _she_ and now this dream _really_ didn't make any sense.

He moved his gaze to _his_ Sanji, the Sanji he was married to, the fully grown man with a goatee he always made fun of but secretly found very hot, and his hopes were crushed when he saw the guilty expression on his face as he stared at him with wide eyes.

"I can explain."


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter Three**_

 _ **Accepting**_

Sanji kicked the door close behind him and flung the keys in the bowl.

"So, this is where my husband and I live…"

He didn't know what to say to welcome the twins to his home but by the looks on their faces, it was safe to assume that they weren't really listening to him.

Chopper lived on the second floor, and Zoro and Sanji lived on the twenty second. The upgrades were classic and the design relatively modern yet simple. Hitomi and Andrian's visible eyes were round saucers and they gaped at the interior with awe.

Sanji would have felt happy but he was way too worried about Zoro to say anything about it. He walked them to their kitchen and set Andrian on the counter. He bent and lifted Hitomi to join her brother. She gave him a wide smile, her eyes gleaming with happiness. He couldn't help but return it, deciding it was the most beautiful expression he had ever seen and he would do anything to keep it intact. He shrugged out of his jacket and set it beside her and walked over to the fridge.

"What do you guys want to eat?" Sanji asked them, opening the fridge to look at his ingredients before any awkwardness could settle in the moment. He was pretty sure Zoro had heard him close the door and even though he knew a confrontation was coming, he wanted to keep things simple, just a little longer.

"Uh… anything is fine."

Sanji nodded and pulled out the necessary ingredients for a simple Italian beef stew and turned on his Dutch oven over medium-high heat. The stew was supposed to be delicious, yet soothing, which the twins probably needed. He would have to feed them simple meals for the first couple of weeks until their stomachs learned how to process food correctly. If they hadn't been eating well, like he suspected, something too complex or strong would only upset their stomachs.

He grabbed the onions and carrots, bringing out his chopping board to start the preparation. The sound of his knife hitting the cutting board wasn't enough to block out the sounds of Zoro's footsteps approaching, but he ignored them.

Didn't mean his stomach didn't twist in nervousness, though.

He picked the garlic clove and started mincing it quickly, the knife almost blurring in his hurriedness, but as Zoro's steps came closer, he forced himself to stop. The next part was sautéing the vegetables, which he would burn if he was too busy talking to Zoro. The last thing he wanted to do now was wasting food.

He really didn't want to deal with this. Cooking was supposed to be soothing, his safe-haven, but right now, it was only making him more nervous.

Zoro's footsteps stopped and Sanji put down his knife with a shaky breath, quickly turning around before Zoro could say anything.

His mind instantly headed to the gutter when he saw his husband in all of his post-workout gloriousness. His eyes quickly followed the beads of sweat and water running down his tanned muscles, dipping in every ridge and curve that formed over the wonderful planes of his chest. He feels momentarily jealous of them, wishing it was his tongue licking its way down Zoro's chest, but those feelings are instantly crushed when Andrian spoke.

"Why is your hair green? It looks stupid."

Sanji's eye widened as it snapped up to look at Zoro's, taking in the confusion, surprise, and astonishment in its depth. Before he can say anything, Hitomi continues.

"Just like a marimo," she said, nodding in agreement.

He couldn't believe it. What are the chances that the first words his twins spoke to Zoro would be the same words he spoke to Zoro the very first time they met, verbatim!?

Zoro turned to look at him, the flexed muscles deflating like a balloon losing it's air, dark eye confused to no end.

"I can explain," he said quickly and Zoro's eye narrowed.

"Go on," he said, the words gritted.

Sanji blinked, having expected a more... _explosive_...response. He could deal with a shouting Zoro; hell, could shout louder, but a quiet Zoro was bad news.

"Um," he began, wincing at the hesitant word, "So...Chopper called me...but you know that, since...well, I met them, the twins, I mean...and they...see, a few years ago...not that I know who...so they're mine and...but I didn't know you…! Six years... It's, you see…"

"We're his kids," Hitomi interrupted and Sanji quickly snapped his mouth shut before any more word-vomit could spill out. "We saw him in a magazine and realized he was our father, so we came looking for he didn't know about us and we don't know who our mother is."

Zoro stared at Hitomi with an impassive expression as she gave him a much more understandable explanation. His eye flicked to Andrian.

Zoro couldn't help but think he looked just like Sanji. He'd seen pictures of a younger Sanji, of course. They were married, there's no way he hadn't. Zeff sure liked to pull them out when he wanted to poke fun at his son.

So yeah, he knew that Andrian was almost an exact photocopy of Sanji. His hair was maybe a shade brighter and his face was less rounded than Sanji's at that age, but the differences were so minimal that only Zoro-who knew Sanji better than anyone-could tell they were there.

There was no doubt: these were Sanji's kids.

A mixture of conflicting emotions flitted through Zoro, each one vying for attention before fading away to be replaced by yet another. There was a big part of him that was stuck in wonder. There were two kids in front of him that belonged to the man he loved. They were Sanji's flesh and blood, a part of Sanji, someone he adored.

He always wanted kids, not as much as Sanji, but they were part of his life plan. Of course, he always thought they would happen later on, once he was more comfortable and secure in his career, maybe in his mid-thirties. Men didn't have an internal clock telling them when to get pregnant-not that he or Sanji _could_ get pregnant, but it was something to think about if they wanted a surrogacy-so it wasn't like they were in a hurry.

"I know...I know this has nothing to do with you," Sanji said suddenly, bringing Zoro out of his thoughts. He looked at Sanji again, surprised at the tremble in his voice.

"I know you didn't sign up for this when you married me. I know…" He sighed, "I know this isn't what you had planned, and neither did I. But...they're my kids, _mine_." He stood up straighter, like the words gave him strength, "And I'm not...I'm not going to leave them, Zoro."

Zoro kept looking at him. Is this what Sanji was worried about? That he would walk out on him? He considered how stupid the thought was. He married Sanji. He said his vows.

" _To love each other truly, for better, for worse."_

He meant every word of it. He was not going to run from this, even if Sanji forced him to.

A loud grumbling sound broke the silence in the kitchen and all eyes turned to look at Andrian, who was bashfully sporting a deep blush on his hollowed cheeks, clearly embarrassed.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I'm hungry."

Sanji turned away from Zoro and added some oil on the hot pan. The conversation could wait. He was going to feed his children first. He was about to add the vegetables when Zoro's fingers suddenly slipped in his hair and turned his head to the left. Their lips met and Sanji's heart raced like he had just run a marathon.

It was simple and soft. Two lips pressing onto each other, but it was all the reassurance Sanji needed and he leaned back into the sweaty chest. Zoro was not going to leave.

The reason behind all the tension came back to him as he realized where he was.

Zoro found himself being pushed back hurriedly by his blushing husband "What do you think you're doing, perverted marimo!?" He huffed and spared a glance to the side.

Andrian was blushing harder than before and Hitomi was looking at them intently, as if waiting to see more.

"Take them to the living room and wipe that sweat off yourself!" Sanji snapped and turned back to the stove. He added the vegetables and the mild sizzling sound filled the room. He didn't realize it but he was smiling softly. Zoro was absurd with words so he prefered to convey his emotions this way and as barbaric as it may seem, it was what Sanji loved the most in him.

Zoro grinned as he saw the confidence return in his husband's voice. Sanji understood what he wanted to express, like he always did. It was foolish in the first place to even think that Zoro would not understand him.

He walked over to the kids and now, he felt a little jittery. What was he supposed to say to them? Well, Sanji said told him to take them to their living room so he might as well start there.

Kids could probably smell fear. Yes. That had to be it. Because the smile Hitomi was giving was freaking him out a little. How old were they again?

"Uh…" He muttered unintelligently,"Living room… let's go."

"Andrian can't walk for two days." The girl piped. "He got hurt."

Andrian...So that was the boy's name. Zoro just realized he didn't even know the name of the children he had so easily decided to accept into their small family. Come to think of it, if it wasn't for the studs the girl wore, he wouldn't be able to tell apart their gender.

"Right. What's your name?"

"Hitomi." She replied innocently, giving him the same smile.

"Alright, Hitomi, let's go to the living room. I'll carry your brother."

He lifted her off the counter, placing his hands under her armpits as she placed her wee hands on his forearms. She was so light. They would definitely have to feed these children into getting all plump and healthy. He set her on the ground, her head barely reaching his hips.

When he stood to lift Andrian, the boy cringed a little. "What is it?" Zoro questioned. "What's wrong?"

"No, nothing," Andrian scowled at him. "It's just, well, he's right. You're stinky and you look sticky."

Sanji snorted quietly and Zoro glared at the boy. "What," he said flatly, not even tilting his voice in a question.

"You're gonna get your sweat all over me!" Andrian complained loudly.

"It's just sweat!" Zoro snapped. "Or would you rather walk?"

"I'll wait for you to wash up."

Zoro stared incredulously at the kid. This brat...he was just like Sanji! Zoro turned his gaze to Sanji, who was watching him with laughter in his eyes, and pointedly glanced at Andrian, silently asking ' _can you believe this kid?'_. Sanji rolled his eyes and threw him a dish towel.

"Just wipe yourself," he sighed. "He's a _kid_ , Zoro," he added when Zoro opened his mouth to complain. "Don't be one with him."

Zoro's mouth snapped closed and he grudgingly wiped his chest with the small dish towel Sanji gave him.

"Happy?" he barked.

"You still stink."

Zoro huffed and wrapped his arm around the boy's waist and lifted him off the counter like he was a dumbell.

'Oi! Let go of me! I'll walk!" All of his struggles were futile, of course, as he dangled off Zoro's hand. Zoro had a body which put an WWE fighter's to shame. There was no way the boys' little punches and kicks affected him. He probably didn't even feel it.

"Shut it kid. You aren't walking till Sanji here gives you permission." Zoro plopped him on his shoulder and walked out of the kitchen, Hitomi running to keep up with his steps.

Sanji sighed at the display but when he turned back to add beef to the stew, he grinned.

"... and then these men came and pushed us into the corner. Mr. Chopper and Miss Nami came and helped us out."

Zoro listened to her intently. He had gotten the kids in the room and had set Andrian down on the sofa as Hitomi scrambled up to sit next to him. After finding his discarded shirt from last night and slipping it on, he had asked Hitomi how they had ended up at Chopper's.

Taking the bus and spending all their pocket money on the ticket was definitely the most adventurous idea Zoro had ever heard, especially when he considered their age. As it turned out, they were dropped a block away from their building and that was where they were attacked.

Zoro made a mental note to thank Chopper personally. The man was like a younger brother to him. He also decided pay those thugs a homey visit.

"Brunch time, kids."

Sanji walked in, wearing the apron that Zoro got for him, the words 'Love Cook' stamped across the chest. He was perfectly balancing a tray of hot stew and four soup bowls.

"Sit around the table, don't worry, the carpet is clean."

Andrian started to edge off the sofa but Zoro was holding him back from his hoodie in a matter of seconds. Hitomi on the other hand, jumped off and was already seated on the carpet, looking at the tray intently, the hunger clear in her eyes.

"Didn't you hear me kid? You aren't walking till Sanji tells you otherwise."

Zoro picked him up, much to Andrians dismay and slipped off the couch to sit in front of the coffee table. When he crossed his legs, he simply set Andrian between them. Hitomi looked at them with a curious expression. Zoro couldn't see it, what with the hungry looks he was giving Sanji's food, but Andrian was blushing lightly as he sat on the man's lap.

They had never, in their life, been made or rather, allowed to sit that close to whoever it was they lived with. They usually ate after the family had eaten. So, when Sanji set down the tray and sat down next to Zoro, she quietly climbed onto his lap.

Sanji looked down in surprise as his daughter settled herself comfortably, her back pressing softly in his chest. He felt his bones lose their rigidity when he noticed her red ears. He smiled warmly and ruffled her hair, which he noted they needed to wash asap.

He leaned ahead and handed out the moist warm hand towels to Zoro and Andrian. He set about cleaning Hitomi's hands and face before they started to eat. She allowed him to pick her hands gingerly and closed her eyes when he ran the towel across her face.

Next to him, Zoro looked at him warily for a few seconds before looking down at Andrian who was staring back at him with a wide eye.

"Do you want…?"

"No, I'll do it myself." The kid all but snatched the towel from his hand and started to rub his hands and face into it, maybe a little too roughly. Zoro sighed and cleaned his own dirty hands and face. Hey! The kid didn't want it.

It was unlike Sanji to pamper him. He was always kicked and told to wash his hands before he even sat down to eat. But the kids were receiving special treatment and he wasn't going to deny that it irked him a little.

He looked up to notice Sanji's quirked eyebrow and quickly put the towel away, picking up his spoon instead.

"Dig in," Sanji told the twins, smiling softly when they both eagerly obeyed. Zoro, the hound that he was, followed right along. But Sanji paused a little, waiting to hear the sounds of enjoyment that soon came from his twins and Zoro.

"This is good!" Andrian exclaimed in surprise, looking at Sanji in wonder.

"Really good," Hitomi mumbled around a spoonful, Zoro nodding in agreement.

"Thank you," Sanji said brightly, sufficiently satisfied. "But slow down. You don't want to get a bellyache. Zoro, that goes to you, too."

Zoro paused to glare at him, ignoring the way the twins snickered. "I don't get _bellyaches_."

"Stomach ache, then, Mr. Man," Sanji rolled his eyes and Zoro huffed, but the stew was too good to let it go cold arguing with his husband.

There was silence in the Roronoa-Black household as everyone ate the delicious meal, the occasional clink of spoon meeting the bowl or an incivil slurp as they sipped the stew's broth, interrupting it. Andrian finished first and yawned widely, his one hand rubbing his eye. And the train started, Hitomi yawned next, followed by Zoro and Sanji stifled his own, his eyes watering in the process.

"We don't have a room for you guys yet, so the guest room is yours for now. Do you mind sharing a bed?" The twins shook their head. "Okay. Let's go to your room then."

Hitomi got up and Sanji took Andrian from Zoro's lap. He hesitated, "You're coming?" he asked

Zoro smiled at him and stood up. "Why wouldn't I, cook?" He extended his hand to Hitomi who took it immediately.

The two walked to the guest room with their children, a seed of new responsibility and concern sowing itself into the depths of their heart.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter Four**_

 _ **Family**_

Sanji bit his lip, worried. The water that ran over his hand felt comfortable, but Zoro always complained that Sanji's showers were too cold. It was one of the reasons why they didn't have sex in the shower so much anymore. But kids needed warm water. Would this feel good to them? What if the water was too cold and they got sick? What if they caught pneumonia? What if-?

Strong arms wrapped around his midriff and Sanji let his breath out slowly as the familiar warm chest of his husband pressed up against him.

"Are you okay?" Zoro's quiet voice asked, his breath tickling Sanji's ear.

"Are you?" Sanji reverted, as much a deflection as an honest concern. He's happy that Zoro seemed okay with everything, honestly, he is. But there's a part of him that was waiting for the bubble to burst.

This was a difficult situation. It was not ideal, for any of them, and Sanji knows that it's going to be hard. Having children is not simple, not even when they're planned, and Zoro didn't sign up for this. They don't even know who the mother is, where she is, or why she left the twins.

There are a lot of unknowns in Sanji's life at that moment, a lot of new responsibilities, none of which Zoro had any say in.

"I know that silence; you're worrying," Zoro says, his voice bringing him out of his spiral of worry again.

"I have the right," Sanji murmurs. He could feel and hear the quiet sigh Zoro let out and startled when a tan arm shut off the faucet.

"C'mon, turn around. Look at me."

Sanji considered starting a petty fight to get out of the conversation. He didn't want to admit that he was afraid that Zoro would change his mind. Maybe Zoro had been waiting for them to be alone to tell him his true feelings. He probably didn't want to say 'I want nothing to do with the twins' in front of them. He wasn't a heartless bastard, after all.

But the adult in him stopped him and he turned around to sit on the bathroom floor, his back resting against the tub. Zoro was squatting in front of him, his eye turned down in concern, a soft frown on his features.

"You can still back out," Sanji spoke first. He wanted to pretend that he didn't care, but Zoro knew him too well. "I won't hold it against you."

"I know I can," Zoro said simply. "But I don't want to."

"How could you not?" Sanji whispered, the question rushed out of his mouth before he could stop it. Why was Zoro staying? What if that reason was not enough?

"I like them," Zoro shrugged, honest as always. "They're...like you. We always knew we'd have children." He took Sanji's hands in his, much the same way the blond had taken Hitomi's just a couple of hours ago, "And sure, we didn't exactly talk specifics and they're a huge surprise, but...I look at them, and I see you. And really, I think, that's all I ever wanted in my kids. A part of the man I love."

Sanji blinked. "Did you just..?" Zoro started blushing as he realized what he had just spoken. "My, Zoro! I keep forgetting what a romantic you are." A grin spread over Sanji's former gloomy features and he leaned forward, hand turning Zoro's head back from where the marimo had turned it to hide his gorgeous flush.

"I'm not a romantic." He mumbled, eye still refusing to meet Sanji's and staring at a point on the tiles next to the blond's hips.

"Hmmm… Let me think. I vaguely remember something," Sanji pouted his face in fake concentration, his curled eyebrow scrunching "What was it? Ah!" He pressed the tip of his nose on Zoro's cheek and and closed his eye, feeling the warm blush, "When you propo.."

Sanji had expected it. Zoro was an honest person and blatantly so. Yet, the tender moments in his life where his honesty exposed the warm, fluffy side of him were rare, making them the most precious memories Sanji held of the man. And whenever these were mentioned, the outcome was usually one of the two thing; sparring or a heavy make out session, just to stop the blond from embarrassing the mosshead further than he already was.

Supple lips attached to his, still parted as he was interrupted mid-sentence and Zoro took full advantage of the situation, sliding his tongue immediately against Sanji's. He hummed as he felt Zoro's tongue attack his mouth and a gruff hand tangled itself in his hair, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss.

Sanji knew Zoro had two very distinct ways of kissing. Normally, and surprisingly, Zoro was gentle. He was a man that liked to enjoy the moment, submerging himself in the feeling of lips sliding against lips, constantly learning every inch of Sanji's mouth. But in moments like this, when he was flustered, his kisses were burning and dominating, pushing against Sanji until all he could do was let Zoro have control.

Zoro's kisses were impassioned, and sometimes even a little messy, but Sanji didn't care...he loved the eagerness in Zoro's moments, that rush of affection that surged out of the other man to let him know how much he was desired, how much he was wanted.

Zoro's mouth detached from his lips, sliding down a bit to kiss and lick at his jaw, giving them both an opportunity to catch their breath, but Sanji wasn't done. As soon as his lungs stopped screaming at him, he pulled Zoro up by the hair, knowing his husband loved having his hair pulled, and re-attached their lips together, taking over. He pushed against Zoro, one hand going down to slip under his shirt, his strong legs pushing the other man back until Sanji could straddle him, feeling the firm form of Zoro underneath him.

Sanji loved Zoro. He loved all the moments he had ever spent with him. He loved his smile and he loved the way his heart was beating against his chest. He loved and respected, beyond measure, the faith the green haired man had in him and he loved that all Zoro needed to accept the kids in his life was them being a part of Sanji.

They were getting short on air again but the moment was too sweet, too exquisite to stop any time soon.

The tinkling sound of a glass breaking into a million pieces sounded from the guest room and Sanji retracted himself from Zoro with a soft 'pop'. Both of them were gasping for air as they turned to look at the slightly ajar bathroom door. The voices of muffled bickering could be heard from the room and it didn't take long for Zoro and Sanji to realize that the twins were having a fight.

Sanji was on his feet before Zoro could stop him, his mind shovelling the regret of ending the kiss early aside. He rushed out of the room and Zoro followed him, still savouring the taste of the cook on his tongue.

They both froze momentarily at the sight of Hitomi straddling Andrian, sitting on top of his stomach with one of her hands twisted in his hair. Andrian, for his part, was holding one of Hitomi's hands away from himself, the other gripped in Hitomi's hair, giving it as good as he got.

Sanji rushed forward without thinking, grabbing Hitomi and pulling her off her brother as Zoro went to help Andrian to his feet.

"What are two doing!?" Sanji exclaimed. "Hitomi, your brother's injured! And Andrian, a man is never to hit a girl!"

Hitomi pivoted around angrily, a "Who even says _that_?" coming out of her mouth before she looked into Sanji's eyes and saw nothing but pain. It took her a moment to realize that when she had turned, her elbow hit her father, where it really shouldn't have.

Sanji felt pain sky rocket up his balls and he stopped breathing as his daughter's elbow pushed the nuts back inside their shell. He fell to his knees, his whole body locked in pain, and his forehead hit the carpeted floor as he slumped forward, a small whimper escaping his throat.

Hitomi's face fell in dismay and she rushed forward, a slew of "I'm sorry...so sorry...I'm so sorry," coming out of her mouth.

Zoro and Andrian cringed, their hands going to their own parts as empathy pain struck them.

"I… It's alright. It's fine. They are fine." Sanji gritted into the carpet as his mind started to address the other senses in his body again. "They?" Hitomi's voice turned from apologetic to curious. Sanji whimpered again, his mind still buzzing in pain as Andrian and Zoro started laughing. How was he supposed to tell a five year old what 'they' were?

Sanji hummed the tune of Lobo's 'Me and You and a Dog Named Boo' as he started on the second wash on Hitomi's hair. The little girl was staring to him intently with a soft smile on her face and chin resting on her knees which she had pulled in close to her chest. Her hair were slicked on the top of her head, revealing her broad forehead and showing off the curled eyebrows she inherited from her father.

Sanji looked down at her to make sure the shampoo was not getting in her eyes when he noticed her beaming at him. He smiled widely and bent down, quickly bumping his head against her softly, noses lined up and eyes bearing into each other, their smiles an exact copy of the other, before sitting back up. Hitomi giggled when she noticed that Sanji had gotten some shampoo froth in his hair as a result.

Sanji looked at her fondly. He had missed five years of this. Five years to get to know his daughter and son and it had all been snatched away from him. He wondered again who it was… Who was the girl who had to go through all this alone. Did she even know that hers kids were alive and well? Or did she give them up willingly? The thoughts immediately left him as he heard Hitomi giggle again. He had lost five years, but he wasn't going to lose anymore. He would not let anything come between his kids and him anymore.

Sanji grinned at the bubbly girl, "Why were you fighting with Andrian?" he asked softly, the question that had been left unanswered just a few minutes ago coming back to him.

Hitomi's grin disappeared and the crescent line was replaced by a scowl. This was the first time since Sanji had met her - granted they had only known each other for barely four hours - that she had scowled. She looked exactly like Andrian did, maybe a little cuter, with her cheeks slightly puffed like a chipmunk and it simply turned Sanji's bones into a gooey mess.

"We were trying to decide who fought better against those men," she muttered.

"Oh!" Sanji was feeling a little confused about what he was actually feeling. First of all, there was anger, he wanted to really meet these 'men' the twins had run into. Then he felt confused as to why two kids, the age of five, were not shaken up after being cornered that way. And now he also felt bad for having those thoughts. He should be proud that he has brave kids, no thanks to him though. Here came the regret of not being there for them again. Lastly, he didn't know what to say to the reason for the fight.

Frankly, every sparring match between Zoro and him was to know who could fight better. So, in no way was he going to say that it was 'immature'. No! It wasn't immature!

"So, who won?"

"No-one… You stopped us…" She closed her eyes as Sanji massaged his fingers through her hair. He gave her a few seconds to continue. It was obvious she wanted to say more. But when she didn't, he urged her a little. "But...?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him, "The tallest man, he was about to kick me. But Andrian stuck his leg in between so he got hurt."

Pure anger coursed through Sanji's veins. Kick a small kid? A girl on top of that?

"If he didn't do that, I would be the one who got hurt." Hitomi wasn't done. "He thinks I am weak, that I can't take it. And I hate that in him." She looked into Sanji's eyes, anger and hurt almost brimming to the surface. Sanji's eyes widened and mind stopped working as he saw tears well up in the beautiful eyes.

"You think she is weak." Zoro pressed the lever on the faucet and warm water flowed out. He held his palm on Andrian's forehead, practically covering his eyes, nose and upper lip in the process. The water ran the shampoo out of his hair, leaving it looking like liquid gold.

"No, she can take a hit." Andrian spoke through Zoro's fingers, his head tilted back, "But that doesn't mean those men get to hit her."

Zoro frowned as he made sure all the shampoo was out of the boy's hair. It seemed like he was born with Sanji's beliefs ingrained in his DNA. Zoro had to step in many a times when a lady had been unnecessarily trying to demean Sanji and he just stood there like an idiot, all because he believed females were some pious Goddesses. But the scene before completely contradicted that belief. Andrian had literally been trying to pull his sister's hair almost as much as she had been trying to pull his. He hummed quietly.

When he was sure that the shampoo was out, Zoro removed his hand and walked over to the soap holder to search for a mild soap for the boy. Sanji had around ten different soaps, all with different scents and purpose. Guess that was going to come in handy now. He picked a moisturizing one, which smelled like coconuts, and headed back to the boy staring at him strangely from where he sat in the tub.

"No _one_ gets to hit her," Andrian repeated, leaving Zoro surprised by the intensity of his words.

"Of course not," he said, meeting Andrian's gaze. "Trust me, you'll never have to face people like that again."

The suspicion didn't leave Andrian, but he allowed Zoro to step closer and wash him. Zoro could feel the tension in the small body and he frowned, worried. What could make such a young child so...guarded?

"You know...Sanji has always wanted kids," he spoke softly,gently. His hands still worked on washing away the grit and grime from the pale body. "We never talked much about it, but...it's just one of the things you get to know about a person, especially if you decide you want to marry them. Now that you're here, he's not going to let you go."

Andrian pulled his legs up to his chest, unbeknownst to the fact that in the second bathroom, his sister was in the exact same position, and rested his chin on his knees to let Zoro wash his back. "You know him really well."

"Yeah, I _am_ his husband," Zoro snorted lightly. "It's one of the perks."

"And us? Are we one of the perks?"

Zoro paused, and for just one moment, he's distracted by how big his hands looked against Andrian's small body. He was so young...so soft...so delicate. He's strong of spirit, just like his father, but he's a _child_. A child that needed to be protected and cared for, a child starving for affection.

"Yeah...you're one of the perks."

Zoro felt some of the tension leave the tiny human. His shoulders drooped ever so lightly and his gaze softened infinitesimally. Zoro rubbed the soap softly, creating more lather, and stayed silent, waiting for the words that seemed to be stuck inside the little boy.

When he finally spoke, it was soft and hesitant, still guarded but with the barest hint of hope. "You know, you're not that bad...for a mossman."


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter Five**_

 _ **Blocked**_

Zoro hated shopping. For him it was a whirl of unnecessary items to buy that are never used except once, maybe twice. But, thankfully for him, he was married to Sanji and in addition to being the best photographer in The Grand Magazine, he had an exquisite taste in fashion.

Everything that Zoro owned in his closet from his Armani suits to his Nike socks had been bought for him by Sanji. The blond had always complained that Zoro's fashion sense was simply primitive. He had to bear with hundreds of changes before Sanji decided on that 'one' shirt that apparently stood out from the rest. To Zoro, they all looked horrible and over priced.

But the gleam in Sanji's eyes when he saw him in that perfect piece of clothing was enough of a motivation for Zoro to keep wearing the outfits day in and day out. Well, the gleam and the hot promise of sex that those appealing outfits got.

But that's not the point. The point is that Zoro hates shopping and is horrible at it as well. Which is why he didn't need to accompany his husband when they went to shop for the twins. He would just end up buying something horrible for them and then they would give him the 'marimo' look, which he was surprisingly already used to. Maybe because they looked so much like their father when they did it.

Sanji could have easily invited Nami; she was good with clothes, had already met the kids and no way in hell would she refuse. Kids were her soft spot. But here they were, with Andrian piggy-riding on his back and Hitomi clutching Sanji's hand as they flited through the crowded Water Seven Mall.

Not for the first time, Sanji almost tripped on Hitomi, the girl was sticking close to her father as she glared at the incoming crowd.

"Hitomi...is there something wrong?" Sanji asked for nth time, his voice slightly strained in a way that told Zoro he was getting irritated. It was clear that he didn't want to get upset with her - like with other girl in the world - but if this kept going, he would end up falling flat on his face.

"I'm fine," Hitomi answered, the same answer she'd always give.

"She doesn't like crowds," Andrian suddenly piped in, earning a slightly betrayed glare from his sister. "She's a bit claustro… closto… castro… she hates small spaces."

"Claustrophobic." Zoro looked down at Hitomi curiously, wondering why she looked like someone had kicked her puppy. It was almost as if she didn't want them to know.

"Is that right?" Sanji asked in concern.

"I'm fine," Hitomi muttered, but she gripped Sanji's leg tightly as a group of teenagers walked past her.

The couple shared a look, then Sanji knelt down to pick up his daughter. "Here, you can ride on my shoulders."

"My leg doesn't hurt!" Hitomi argued, but Sanji was already standing up, holding her steady.

"It doesn't matter," Sanji said. "Is this better?"

"I was fine." She muttered, but she did lose the grumpy look on her face and slung her arms comfortably around her dad. Zoro grinned. She was just like her father.

"Oh. This store looks good." Sanji paused a minute later, his vulture eyes noting something praiseworthy in the shop they stood in front of. Well, this was it. There was no turning back now. Sanji walked into the shop and Zoro followed him helplessly, knowing this was going to take all day.

"What is that?" Hitomi glared at the frock Sanji picked out for her; pink, lined with glitters and obnoxious frills sown into the neckline and shoulders.

"It's a princess's gown, my sweetheart. Do you like it?"

Andrian snickered and Zoro tried to understand what made Sanji ask that question. It was obvious from the look on her face that Hitomi found the dress absolutely ridiculous. She didn't answer though and kept staring at it, like she did with all the previous choices.

"You can say no. It's a huge store. There are more things we can get."

Hitomi looked at Zoro with huge eyes. "I don't like it."

Zoro smiled at her warmly and Sanji sighed as he added the dress to the growing pile of silently rejected clothes. He knew it was difficult to shop for women but so far, Hitomi had not liked a single dress he picked out for her which was rather difficult for him to accept. Zoro glanced at him sympathetically. Sanji was a ladies man and knew exactly what women liked to wear or adored. It didn't matter that the lady in this case was barely five years old.

"Hey, why don't I take her around the shop and let her choose? You can concentrate on Andrian."

Sanji looked at him, his face showing doubt in his husband's shopping and directional skills, but the decision was taken out of his hands when Hitomi immediately grabbed Zoro's hand and stared at him with wide, pleading eyes.

"Fine," he sighed, feeling a little down that Hitomi preferred to shop with Zoro. "We'll meet back here in say...half an hour? And _don't_ get lost."

"Yeah, yeah." Zoro rolled his eyes, tugging Hitomi after him. "See ya later, love cook."

"Be careful!" Sanji yelled after them, but only received a lazy wave in return. He stared after his husband and daughter in concern, until Andrian tugged on his hand, reminding him he still needed to help Andrian pick his clothes. "C'mon, Andrian," Sanji said, picking him up. "Let's go get you something classy."

Now, Zoro did not know much about fashion and style, certainly not like Sanji, but he _did_ know comfort. So he took Hitomi away from the frilly dresses and into the section that carried more sensible clothes: like shirts, jeans, and shorts.

"This is so much better," Hitomi said, looking at a rack filled with plain white t-shirts.

"What size are you?" Zoro asked curiously, browsing through the selection of cargo shorts. Sanji hated them, he said they were the epitome of laziness, but Zoro thought they were pretty practical. Not only where they durable, they also had a shit-ton of pockets, and who didn't like pockets?

"Uh...small?"

Zoro frowned. He was used to seeing tags with waist sizes for the pants and S, M, or L for shirts...but these pants didn't have anything like that. Instead, he could see the pants were numbered, some of them with an added T.

Did that mean age? So it would make sense for Hitomi to be a size 4 since she was four years old, right?

Zoro picked up a size 4 pants and compared the waist of it to Hitomi's. It looked way too big. Well, she _was_ a bit skinny. Andrian, too...he had noticed it when he bathed him. He didn't know much about kids, but he knew they weren't supposed to look so...skeletal.

Well, that would go away soon enough living with Sanji. Food would never be a problem in the Roronoa-Black household.

"Why don't you try these on?" Zoro said, holding out a pair of size three shorts. "Let's find out your size."

Hitomi grabbed the shorts and one of the shirts she had been looking at, tucking them underneath her arms. "You have to come with me, you know."

Shit, that's right. Zoro stood up a bit straighter, looking around the department store. He could see the changing rooms by the corner, the Women and Male signs clearly labeled. There were about three women waiting outside of the changing rooms, clearly waiting to try on something. There was no one waiting on the male's side, mostly because guys didn't really bother trying stuff on before buying it.

It would probably be best to take Hitomi to the guy's section. There were doors for privacy and Zoro didn't have to worry about accidentally seeing some naked woman. Sanji would kill him for it.

"C'mon," he said to Hitomi, momentarily surprised when she grabbed his hand, before shrugging it off. Damn, it was going to take a while for him to get used to holding hands with the kids everywhere.

Thankfully, things weren't as awkward as they could've been, especially since Hitomi was pretty self-sufficient. The pants did fit her a little loose, so he went back to look for different sizes, until he finally found the correct one.

"You like these?" Zoro asked, watching her as she studied herself in the full-length mirror inside the changing room. She was wearing a simple blue shirt and khaki shorts. There was no pink, no frill, no fluffiness...none of the things that Sanji thought looked good on a woman.

"Yes," Hitomi answered, smiling softly. "They're comfy. But are you sure it's okay? Dad wanted me to get dresses."

"He's not the one who's gonna have to wear them," Zoro replied,a second later rolling his eyes. It was a little surprising to hear someone call Sanji _dad,_ "Just pick what you want. Don't worry about the cook."

"Okay! Then, can I get more shorts like these? They have huge pockets!"

"Sure, kiddo. C'mon."

It didn't take them long to find more clothes. Shopping with Hitomi was a lot better than shopping with Sanji, since it was practically like shopping for himself. Zoro liked her taste: simple and comfortable. So they were pretty much done in fifteen minutes. Most of their time had gone into finding Hitomi's size and making sure all of her clothes fit.

After buying the clothes, Zoro decided to treat the girl with a snack. Sanji was strictly against snacking unless he was the one providing said snack, but Zoro believed Hitomi deserved it after being so well-behaved. Besides, she needed some fattening up.

"Pick something," Zoro said simply, stopping in front of the Marble Slab Creamery. He was pretty lucky the stand was right outside the department store since Water Seven Mall was built like a maze and trying to find anything inside was always dangerous business when Zoro was involved.

"I can have anything I want?" Hitomi asked incredulously, looking up at Zoro with wide, hopeful eyes.

"Yeah," Zoro shrugged. "Pick something for your brother, as well." The kid probably deserved it, for putting up with Sanji during a shopping trip.

As it so happened, Andrian didn't deserve that treat because he was almost as choosy about his clothes as Sanji and thankfully, or maybe not that thankfully, the father and son gelled instantly as they chose clothes for the boy. Zoro and Hitomi had to wait for another half hour before Sanji walked out of the store looking pleased with himself, his son coping his expression on his shoulder.

"Hey Marimo" He came to a stop in front of them. "You guys got something?" He smiled down at Hitomi who beamed at him.

"Yes. We got a lot of clothes." She chirped at him.

"Please tell me you got more than just two pairs of clothing, cook." Zoro eyed the suspiciously light bags in Sanji's hands while Hitomi turned around to collect the order they placed for Andrian. The duo had taken so long in the store that Andrian's ice cream was sure to have melted by then.

"Shut up, Marimo. Of course we got more than two. We got three." He mumbled the last part.

"You took forty five minutes for three changes?"

"Don't complain Marimo. Unlike you, Andrian here … Is that ice cream?" Sanji's eyes zeroed on the chocolate chip cone in Hitomi's hand.

"Yeah, I thought the kid could do with some after shopping with you. Didn't know you were both such women."

"Now you've ruined their appetite!" Sanji snapped, glaring at Zoro.

"They're _kids_. They eat anything!"

"Just because they _can_ doesn't mean they _should_!"

"You're such a nag."

They kept bickering as they started walking again, Andrian happily lapping on the ice cream with a satisfied gleam in his eye and Hitomi looking between Sanji and Zoro as they argued, her chin set on Zoro's shoulder and head hooked in a curious manner. A minute later, they came across a Book store and Sanji insisted on buying some kid stories for the twins and Zoro agreed readily.

They entered the shop, checked in their bags and Sanji started to chat with the girl on the counter as Zoro carried Hitomi to the kids section. Andrian looked happy to stay with Sanji and talk to the lady. He had stopped getting irked about the blond flirting with women, it was his second… well, first nature and he never had any ill motives behind it.

He helped Hitomi to the ground. "Well, what types of books do you like?"

Hitomi looked at him, confusion mapped out on her face, "Type?"

"Yeah.. Like, fairy tales. Maybe you like comics? Or Secret Seven and Famous Fives?"

The confusion on the little girl's face only increased and she actually started to look a little tense. Zoro sighed and knelt low so he was just a head taller than her.

"Ok, so, we are going to go through some of these books and you can select any that you like. You can decide later what your favorite genre is. Alright?"

She nodded and Zoro started with the simple fairy tales: Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Thumbelina, Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks. She looked at each of them with interest but Zoro could see she was being polite again and so he moved on to the comic section. He started with Tintins and her eyes sparkled instantly as she ruffled through the colorful images and tried to spell out a few words that popped out to her. Her vocabulary wasn't too good but she was four. Zoro reassured her that he would help her understand the words she didn't get.

This, however, poked something at the back of his mind. The twins were around five. That meant they should be in Kindergarten and already finished with Nursery. He looked at Hitomi picking out an Asterix and flicking through it intently. "Hey, kid?" She looked at him, closing the book immediately like she wasn't supposed to read it. "No, it's fine. Select what you like. But, which preschool have you been to?"

"Oh we haven't been to any school." Andrian's voice spoke from behind him and Zoro turned to see Sanji about two feet away from him. "We don't really do well in crowds. So they never sent us to any." Sanji started to look slightly worried and Zoro was sure his face reflected the emotion.

Raising kids was not an easy task and this was one of the reasons. Giving the right education to the children at the right time was extremely important. You can't just skip on it or delay it and according to what Andrian just said, they were already lagging. It didn't matter what these two wanted to be when they grew up, they had to be educated.

"Can I have these?" Zoro turned around to see Hitomi holding around five Tintins in her small hands and looking at Zoro expectantly. Asterix was back on its counter and Zoro smiled. He never enjoyed that comic as much as he enjoyed Tintin. He took the bundle from Hitomi's hands "Sure. Is this all that you want?" He shuffled through them, making sure she didn't pick any half part of the series.

"Yeah, I'm fine with these." She shuffled her feet and Zoro held her gaze, a soft smile in place as he waited for her to speak. "Well," There it was, "I want to read that one too." She pointed to the book near Zoro's head.

"The Jungle Book?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Zoro grabbed it off the shelf and got up, turning to Sanji. "I'll meet you at the counter. They have a toy section in here. I think I'll take her there to select a few."

Sanji nodded and Zoro held out his free hand to Hitomi who grabbed it readily. He kissed his cook quickly on the cheek and enjoyed as both Andrian and Sanji's cheeks started to turn pink. He chuckled and walked off with Hitomi who had a huge grin plastered on her face.

His mood quickly soured, however, when the bookshelves around him started to move. He didn't know why it always happened when Sanji wasn't around to see it, but Zoro was already used to it. It wasn't his fault the whole world was a maze.

"What took you so long?"

Zoro turned around suddenly, almost making Hitomi trip, and glared at Sanji. Behind him, Zoro could see the shelves filled with toys and stuffed animals. Damn it.

"Don't say a word," Zoro growled, ignoring Sanji's wide grin.

"We kept going in circles," Hitomi whispered to Sanji and Zoro rolled his eyes. Traitor.

Thankfully, she was quickly distracted by the sight of literally dozens of toys everywhere, so she gladly forgot about Zoro's misfortune and dragged them to look at the toys. Andrian was quickly enthralled by the arts & crafts section, but Hitomi was more interested in the stuffed toys.

Zoro had never met a kid that didn't like toys. Hitomi and Andrian were not an exception. He could see that they were a little hesitant - he had a feeling neither twin had ever owned anything remotely expensive - but Sanji was quick to comfort them.

"Pick anything you want," he said. "Don't worry."

The only thing Sanji absolutely refused to get was a giant stuffed spider that Hitomi found in a clearance bin.

"But the legs move!" she whined. "See?"

Sanji flinched as the black, hairy legs started to twitch, a jittering noise coming out of the toy, and took a step back closer to Zoro. "Girls shouldn't like toys like that."

Zoro snorted. That wasn't going to work on Hitomi. He didn't understand why Sanji didn't just admit he was scared of the damn toy.

"I like it too!" Andrian piped in.

"And so do I. I don't care if girls like it or not," Hitomi added stubbornly.

Sanji wavered, flustered by the pleading eyes and pouted lips of his two adorable kids. "F-fine," he finally gave in. "But I don't want to see it outside of your room! If I see it, I'll throw it away."

 _More like destroy it in fear_ , Zoro thought in amusement.

"Did you guys get everything you wanted?" Zoro asked, looking at the couple of toys they had chosen. There weren't many, but they had both picked plenty of books.

"Yes."

"Alright; let's head home."

Sanji led the way back to the register, where they had to wait in a short line to pay for everything, then he led the way back to where they parked their car. Despite their nap in the morning, the kids were already tired from the long day at the mall, so as soon as Sanji strapped them in their new car seats, they quickly fell asleep.

Zoro was planning on following suit, but Sanji turned down the music and spoke before he could get comfortable.

"What are we going to do about school?"

Zoro frowned, pulling on his seatbelt absentmindedly. He hated how it scratched his neck, but Sanji was a stickler for car safety and he subtly overdid it around Zoro.

"We should enroll them; obviously," Zoro huffed.

"It's not that simple, marimo," Sanji snapped, igniting and roaring the engine to life as he reversed out of the spot. "What do you think Andrian meant when he said they don't do well in crowds?"

Zoro frowned. Yeah, that had been a little odd. "Well...Hitomi is claustrophobic. Maybe it has something to do with that?"

"How is she even claustrophobic? I mean, it's not like you're born with it, right?" Sanji asked seriously, but Zoro only shrugged. He didn't have the slightest idea.

"So what do you want to do?" Zoro asked. "Do we even know of any schools?"

"I'm sure Kaya can help us," Sanji mumbled. "We're going to have to look up some information about claustrophobia. See if there is anything we can do about it or if it's going to be a problem in school."

"I don't think so. I mean, she didn't freak out at home," Zoro shrugged. "I think that only becomes a problem when you're around big crowds or in really small spaces. Like an elevator."

"Schools are crowded places, Zoro. Have you never been to one? I feel like… something's not right," Sanji murmured. "Like there's something we're not seeing. Do you feel it, too? Or am I just being overprotective?"

"No, I feel it too," Zoro said. "It's like...not strong enough to be fear, but not weak enough to be hesitance. It's hard to explain."

Sanji tapped the steering wheel anxiously, biting his lip. Zoro sighed and grabbed Sanji's free hand, intertwining their fingers together. "Well, I don't think it's strange they're keeping something from us," he said, trying to comfort him. "They've literally just met us. Give them some time, I'm sure we'll figure it out."

"Yeah," Sanji said, but both of them knew he didn't really believe it. "You're probably right."

Zoro squeezed his fingers gently and ran his thumb over his knuckles, a soft caress that nevertheless helped relax Sanji's tenseness. Sanji was still worried, but a small smile tugged at his lips, and that's all Zoro needed to see to feel better.

They arrived at All Blue quite soon, the worry and thoughts making the time pass faster than it should. Sanji pulled into their parking space between the Lamborghini and Mercedes. The pair carried the kids back to the apartment, careful not to wake them up, a difficult task since they had a lot of bags to carry with them. They laid the twins on the bed and Zoro started to tuck them in.

"I think I'll make some sandwiches for them, in case they wake up hungry at night. Do you mind setting the clothes in the wardrobe?" Sanji whispered to him.

Zoro shrugged. Really, the blond was behaving quite out of character today. He never requested Zoro for these things, he ordered them to be done.

Setting the clothes in the wardrobe was easy. He simply had to place ten pairs of comfortable clothing on the middle right shelf while three 'sophisticated' pairs went on the right. He sighed. Sanji and Andrian were definitely going shopping again the next day. He couldn't help but notice that even the boy's clothes were smaller than their age usually demanded. The nagging feeling returned to the back of his mind but he heeded his own advice and shook it off. The kids would take time to adjust.

He switched off the lights in the room and walked over to the kitchen. The kids had eaten ice cream, but his stomach was empty and he couldn't wait for Sanji to cook dinner. Everything the cook made was delicious. Well, the cook was delicious too.

The bribe given to him early that morning rung in his ears. The promise of loud uninterrupted sex. The last time Sanji had let Zoro tie him down was when he had won the Leauge Championship last year.

It was memorable, to say the least. Pale skin covered in sweat and eyes lidded under his blond hair as Sanji submitted to Zoro... The image of the gasping man was hard to erase. It was also enough to drive his blood south, making the walk to the kitchen a little uncomfortable.

Sanji had his back to him, the apron back in it's place protecting his shirt and jeans. A little warmth enveloped in his heart as he saw his husband work. He walked behind him, as softly as he could and snuggled his arms around the muscled waist, pressing his nose behind Sanji's ear, eyes closed to enjoy the cook in his arms.

He could feel the toned abs under the layers of clothes hiding them from sight. Sanji leaned back into him, some of the tenseness in his shoulders relaxing and Zoro knew he had a soft smile on those supple lips as his efficient hands still shredded the chicken around the cheese gravy cooking in the pan.

"You're clingy today, marimo. The kids rubbing off on you already?"

Zoro snorted, "No. I just remembered how you woke me up today morning." He didn't need to form a retort, he knew the simple sentence was enough to embarrass the stubborn blond. Judging by the warming skin under his lips, he guessed he was successful.

"We're in the kitchen, mosshead." The mumble just fueled the fire setting deep in Zoro's chest.

"Good," he whispered, "I'm hungry."

He ran his tongue along the curve of Sanji's ear, knowing his husband's weak spot, and his hands sneaked under the apron to tug at the inconvenient belt. He felt Sanji shudder, but the blond didn't stop him as he tugged the belt open and then dragged the zipper down.

Sanji took in a sharp breath as Zoro dragged his jeans down a little to grip him tight, and bit softly on the sensitive cartilage of his ear. Zoro's had lost most of their sensitivity after he had gotten them pierced, but Sanji loved it. Not as much as having his nipples played with, but Zoro didn't really want to get rid of the apron.

Sanji looked sexy as fuck with it on...too bad Zoro was unable to convince him to have naked-apron sex.

"It's gonna burn," Sanji mumbled, his eyes half-lidded, his breath shallow.

"It's not," Zoro whispered, letting go of the thick length for a moment to slick his hand with the oil just infront of them, but he was rewarded by the sound of a soft keen as soon as he gripped Sanji again.

Sanji's head fell on his shoulder as his gasps started to fill the room. Zoro tugged on his ear again, and pressed on the vein under his cock as he gave a particularly slow stroke. He ground his own clothed erection against the almost bare ass as a moan escaped the gasping mouth, falling on the walls of the kitchen and resonating softly.

In an instant, he found himself being elbowed and pushed off his cook, "Wha… What's wrong?"

"What's _wrong_!?" Sanji turned around to look at him, buttoning and zipping his jeans in the process. "You fucking animal, there are kids at home!"

"But they're asleep!" he defended.

"Regardless." He turned around and tipped the chicken on the toasts laying on the plates next to the stove. "We're not doing it in the kitchen or living room or the gym or… anywhere other than our bed. And no." He fixed Zoro with a glare "Not when they are sleeping just one room next to ours. We can do it when they aren't home." He started to add some cottage cheese to the sandwiches.

"But… Sanji - this is just… I mean, they're asleep. They won't…"

The lithe leg arced in the air and contacted with the side of his ribs, not hard enough to really hurt him, but enough to make him double over in pain.

"I said no," he snapped. "Now move, pervert."

Zoro scowled, but Sanji ignored him in favor of walking past him to the guest room.

"And stop pouting!" Sanji called.

"I'm not pouting," Zoro muttered in denial. He crossed his arms and huffed, then quickly snapped them to his sides as he realized crossing them would only make him look more like a scolded child. "Damn curly brow…" Zoro ran a hand through his hair, then groaned in disgust when he remembered too late that his hand was still slicked and warm from the impromptu and unfinished handjob.

"Freaking cockblocker."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry for the delay! Happy Holidays to everyone!**

* * *

Zoro woke up in a bad mood. The bed was empty, Sanji's side cold, and he could hear the sound of the TV coming from the living room. A glance at the clock told him it was still early, and he momentarily debated staying in bed, but the smell of breakfast hit him. Yawning, he got off bed and stopped by the bathroom for his morning routine.

As he moved to the kitchen to check on Sanji, he was distracted by the sound of singing and kids' voices coming from the living room. When he went to check it out, he was surprised to see Hitomi and Andrian sitting on the carpet, watching TV with wide, eager eyes.

"What are you two doing?" he asked, frowning.

Twin pair of blue eyes glanced at him. "Peppa Pig," Hitomi said.

Zoro glanced at the screen, his frown turning into a dark scowl. "Her voice is freaking annoying," he grumbled.

"No, it's not. I like it," Andrian said.

"We can turn it off if you want," Hitomi said, and Zoro looked at her.

Again, there it was. Nervousness. Well, Zoro did have a pretty mean face; he even scared Chopper and Usopp every once in a while and they were both adults. Pretty cowardly adults, but adults nonetheless. He ran a hand through his face, trying to smooth out his features.

"Nah, just turn the volume down a little bit," Zoro said, turning. "It looks like breakfast will be ready soon anyway."

"Okay!"

Zoro spared them a last, searching look, then made his way to the kitchen. Just like he expected, Sanji was busy preparing something delicious. Zoro could smell fresh coffee, hear the sizzling of sausages, and his mouth watered.

"Good morning, marimo," Sanji said without turning around. "I see you finally decided to get out of bed."

Zoro didn't answer and just sat down in the kitchen island. His eyes fell on Sanji's hips, studying the way they moved as the cook worked, and scowled when he felt a familiar heat. Damn it; kitchen sex was out of the question now.

"Don't just sit there, set up the dinner table," Sanji snapped, finally turning around to glare at him. "Chopper's coming to check on Andrian, so set a place for him, too."

Zoro perked up at that. "Chopper?"

"Yeah. Andrian said his leg didn't hurt that bad this morning, but I'd feel better if I heard it from Chopper," Sanji said. "Besides… He'll be able to tell us who it was."

Zoro immediately understood. He knew his husband well enough to read him easily, from the way he talked to the small changes in his facial expressions. "The guys that did that to Andrian?"

Sanji nodded. "Don't you think it's about time we returned the favor?"

"Hell yeah." He grinned and started extracting the utensils from the lower cabinet at the parlour to set five plates around on the table as he started to look forward to the fight. Zoro himself wanted to teach a lesson to those sons of bitches for doing that to the kids. It wouldn't have mattered if they were some stranger's kids, like Chopper, they too would have interfered with those beasts.

Peppa Pig's cacophonous voice flowed into the room and itched on his nerves again. Sanji noticed, "Something wrong?"

"That voice. It's irritating."

"Peppa Pig? But she is amazing. And the kids like her."

"No, it's irritating and their faces look like our privates."

The sound of the spatula hitting the pan echoed in the room as Sanji gasped, apparently horrified by the comparison. Zoro snorted at the look on the blond's face as he started setting the forks, knifes and spoons next. "Way to ruin a childhood, marimo."

He was saved from the trouble of replying when the doorbell rung and Zoro trotted to answer the door. Really, Chopper needed to start entering without ringing the bell. But you couldn't really blame him, not after he repeatedly walked in on the naked couple from time to time. The gloominess returned to him as Sanji's words from last night echoed in his mind. No more open sex… well, not actually open sex. Sanji had refused sex around the kids, then maybe they could do it where the kids were not present. Like they used to and still did when they snuck out in parties.

Zoro opened the door and Chopper was standing there with Nami next to him. "Chopper, Nami, c'mon in. You need to stop ringing the doorbell, I thought we gave you the key?"

"Ah!" Chopper muttered as he entered after Nami who just proceeded to the dinning room without bothering to reply. Zoro didn't really care, she was a witch after all. "Well, I will keep that in mind for the future. So, I guess you received quite a shock yesterday?"

Zoro frowned minutely as he shut the door and the two started to walk to the dining area, "Not really. I mean, I was surprised to see two mini Sanjis in the kitchen, thought it was a dream at first, the resemblance is so uncanny." Chopper chuckled and nodded in approval, "But then when they told me that it was before we even met, I didn't really have to give it a second thought. Sanji has always wanted kids and even though I never said it out loud, I have too."

Zoro was quite an introvert but if there was anyone who he would always open up to, it was Chopper, which is why it was not surprising at all that Zoro told him everything he felt without feeling embarrassed about it. Chopper hummed and gave him his warm infectious smile. They entered the kitchen and the scene that met their eyes made them freeze at the door.

Nami was hugging Sanji as he hugged her back, patting her back reassuringly. The moment seemed quite intimate. Chopper's hand enclosed around his wrist immediately and he turned around questioningly to look at the doctor. The doctor shook his head and put a finger on his lips, then jerked his head in the direction of the TV room from where the voices of the pigs were still flowing into the room. Zoro looked back at Sanji then turned around and followed Chopper out to the living room.

"She overreacted yesterday. She was there when Andrian was hit and you know how she feels about that."

They entered the room and thankfully the screen was playing the ending credits when they did and Andrian and Hitomi were pouring over the remote trying to understand how to use the damn thing. Zoro didn't blame them, Apple TV was a little hard to get used to, not to mention the swipe the kids were totally messing with.

"Hey kids!" Chopper grinned at them cheekily as they turned around to look at him, making them grin back immediately.

"Chopper!" they both exclaimed happily. Hitomi rushed forward to hug the young doctor, but Andrian was forced to stay put, his leg still incapacitating him.

"It's good to see you two again," Chopper said, moving forward to sit next to Andrian. "How's the leg feeling?"

"It doesn't hurt as bad," Andrian answered, looking down at his leg as Chopper started to remove the bandages. "It just feels sore."

"Did you stay off it all day like I said?" Chopper asked curiously.

"He did," Zoro answered, his eyes on Chopper's hand. As an athlete, Zoro was used to injuries. Most of them were not serious, since he was pretty good at taking care of himself, but the few times he had hurt his legs, Chopper had taken good care of him. "How's it looking?"

Chopper looked up at him and smiled. "Don't worry, it feels much better. The swelling has gone down and the range of motion is back to normal. It'll probably be sore for a couple more days, but he should be able to step on it normally now."

Zoro let out a quiet sigh of relief and straightened out. "Hitomi, why don't you help your brother to the dining room? I'm sure your father already has breakfast ready."

"Alright," Hitomi said, extending her arm out for Andrian.

"Thank you, Chopper," Andrian grinned at the young doctor, leaning against his sister for support as they left the room.

Zoro waited until they were out of hearing shot and turned to Chopper, who was already looking at him expectantly.

"I don't know their names, Zoro," Chopper said before Zoro could ask him anything.

"Did any of them look familiar?" Zoro asked, frowning. They lived in one of the high end neighborhood, so they didn't really have to bother with petty gangs. Still, you always found a group of wandering aimless street rats everywhere. Both Zoro and Sanji had connections though and all they needed was a lead.

Chopper closed his eyes, frowning thoughtfully. "No, not really. Well...I think Nami recognized one of them. Tall guy, blond...square face...scar on his forehead."

"Fucking hell!" Zoro hissed. He knew that description. "That's fucking Bellamy."

Chopper frowned. "Bellamy...the guy Luffy beat up a couple of years ago?"

"Yeah," Zoro nodded, running a hand over his face. "He's the leader of a small-time gang. They have ties with Doflamingo, but Bellamy himself is not that big a deal. Just some street rat."

"But Doflamingo is bad news, Zoro," Chopper said, his voice shaking. "He's really bad news."

Yeah, Zoro knew. He and Sanji didn't have dealings with the underground anymore, not after they got married. They had decided to stay clean, especially after their careers started to take off. But he knew Luffy, Robin and Brook, were still involved with the city's underground network.

"What are you gonna do, Zoro?"

"I don't think Doflamingo cares about Bellamy," Zoro muttered. "Like I said, he's just some street rat. What the hell...it doesn't even matter. Bellamy, Doflamingo...nobody gets to fuck with those kids."

Chopper looked like he wanted to say something, but he was interrupted by Sanji's voice calling them over for breakfast. Zoro patted Chopper's shoulder comfortingly, offering him a small smile. He knew that out of all their friends, Chopper was the one who worried the most. Usopp mostly freaked out when he was the one in danger, but Chopper, as their doctor, was always worrying about their health. He was also the youngest in the group, and Zoro has to admit he had a soft spot for the brown-haired man.

"Don't worry about it, Chopper. Sanji and I have everything under control."

They entered the kitchen and Zoro bristled a little when he saw Nami sitting next to his seat. Andrian and Hitomi were sitting on the opposite side and Chopper promptly took the seat that would allow him to sit with Sanji and not with Nami. He grumbled quietly as he sat next to the ginger witch and waited for Sanji to serve the amazing sausages.

"Morning Zoro." Her voice sounded a little heavy and when he turned to look at her, Zoro realized that her eyes were puffed and a little red rimmed.

"Morning."

Sanji arrived as a saviour and started serving breakfast to the kids first, then Nami, Chopper and Zoro, chatting up with Chopper as he did. He finally sat down and served himself and everyone tucked in eagerly. It was delicious of course. The food melted in their mouths and it had the perfect temperature, making them all moan in unison. Satisfied, Sanji started on his own food, continuing his chat with Chopper.

Zoro was silent, wolfing down the food. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Hitomi's eyes didn't leave her food as she ate and Andrian was trying to keep himself from eating too fast. They looked nervous, both had the same telltale signs as Sanji: they both kept biting their lower lip, their eyes shifty and legs jittery.

"How's the food?" Zoro asked them, trying to distract them.

"It's delicious," Hitomi said, startled. She glances at Sanji and smiled widely. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome, dear," Sanji replied, copying his daughter's grin.

"Are those new clothes, Hitomi?" Nami asked kindly, garnering her attention. Nami and Robin had always been good with kids in their own weird ways, their only soft spot.

"Yes!" Hitomi exclaimed happily. "We went shopping yesterday, right Andrian?"

Andrian nodded, not as excited as his sister, and kept eating. Nami shared a look with Sanji, then returned her gaze to Hitomi, smile still in place.

"That's wonderful!"

As Nami kept talking to her, Zoro noticed how Hitomi relaxed. Andrian was still a little more guarded, but he didn't look as shut-off as before. It was clear he liked Chopper better, but Hitomi only had eyes for Nami, following along to her every word. Zoro glanced at Sanji, mindlessly smiling when he noticed the soft look on his husband's face.

Maybe the kids were just nervous because, technically, Chopper and Nami were still strangers. Even Zoro and Sanji were strangers, but their child naivety made them open up more to their fathers. It was only natural for them to be wary of people they only met for a few moments, even if those people saved them from an unfortunate event.

"Sanji, you can take the day off tomorrow, right?" Zoro asked, cutting in on Sanji's and Chopper's conversation.

"Uh, yeah," Sanji said, frowning a little. "Why?"

"I was thinking we could have everyone over for dinner," Zoro shrugged. "To introduce them to the kids."

"That's a great idea!" Chopper exclaimed happily. "We haven't told anyone anything yet but we can't hide it forever!"

The sudden appearance of the twins is something they definitely had to talk about with their friends. Their group was a close-knit one, and both Zoro and Sanji considered all of their friends as their family. They were a big part of their lives, and the twins would have to meet them sooner or later. Zoro is sure everything would go down smoothly. Sure, this going to be some surprise, but ultimately, their friends would accept the twins as easily as Zoro did.

"That is a great idea," Sanji mused. He looks thoughtful for a moment, then looked at Hitomi and Andrian. "How about you guys? Do you think you're ready to meet our friends?"

"I, uh, sure," Hitomi said, sharing a look with her brother.

"Are you sure?" Zoro asked, frowning.

"We're sure," Andrian said quickly, nodding.

Zoro was not entirely convinced, but he decides not to press the matter anymore. He needed to remember to have patience. It was normal for them to be nervous and skittish. Completely normal.

"That's great!" Chopper exclaimed. "I'm sure the others will be thrilled."

"Luffy sure will be; I swear, that damn glutton could eat my entire kitchen if I'd let him," Sanji grumbled good-naturedly. Andrian and Hitomi shared concerned looks and Zoro smiled at them reassuringly. He couldn't wait for the kids to meet the others.

They finished up breakfast quickly, Chopper was in a little bit of a hurry. He only stopped by to check on Andrian, but no one could really say no to Sanji's food. He promised to share the dinner invitation to the others, and left mild pain-killers for Andrian.

"Only if he really, really needs them," He ordered before leaving, glaring at Sanji with his doctor serious eyes.

"Yes, doctor ," Sanji said, rolling his eyes.

After Chopper left, Nami took the kids to the living room to continue watching TV while Zoro helped Sanji wash the dirty dishes. He took his time to share Chopper's news with him.

"That does sound like Bellamy," Sanji murmured as his hands lathered the plates with soap. "Last I heard, he frequents the Wild Cherry. Best place to find him, I bet."

"He's a jackass...but I didn't peg him for a child molester," Zoro growled, getting a little bit pissed off just thinking about it.

Sanji shrugged. "It doesn't matter. If it was Bellamy, he should be showing signs of a fight. You can bet your ass neither Chopper nor Nami let him go without a punch at least."

Zoro snorted. "Nami sure packs a punch. You wanna go check him out?"

"It doesn't hurt to check," Sanji nodded. "Go ask Nami if she can watch over the twins while I finish up here."

Zoro nodded, grinning. Sex was out of the question for now, but a good fight was always a wonderful replacement for stress-relief. He felt good enough to go request the witch to look after their, their, kids.

Nami readily accepted, not even bothering to charge Zoro for the favor. She definitely liked the twins, her maternal instincts probably already attached to them. It was weird, thinking of Nami as maternal, but nothing Zoro couldn't wrap his head around.

The Wild Cherry was a rundown bar at the edge of town. It was a famous bar for the local street rats, often the place to look for if you were looking for a dime or some Molly. Or if you were just looking to fuck up your life.

Zoro and Sanji only ever went there twice, both of the time accompanying Luffy. It was neutral ground, though the whole neighborhood itself belonged to Doflamingo. But it was also a crappy place, so the higher ups didn't bother with it.

It didn't take them long to arrive at the place, it was easily recognizable as the only run down building next to the sky scrapers. Zoro wondered how it still had the permit to stand. Sanji lighted up a cigarette before they went in and Zoro fixed his jacket, hiding his fists in his pockets. They pushed through the hinged wooden doors and the first thing that hit their noses was the stench of sweat. It smelt like the crowd in this pub didn't like to bathe or brush their teeth seeing as to how most of the jobless grinning men were showing rotting front teeth.

Sanji walked over to the pub where a lone man was sitting, almost falling asleep on his was mostly, always a different bartender running this place, since it was a pretty hard job to keep. Ending up in a hospital was the least of your worries in here.

Zoro followed the blond, noticing the way some of the men pointed at them and started giggling, a couple of them making vile imitations of cock sucking and pretending to choke over it. Zoro grinned to himself. They were already underestimating them, cool. It would be fun to break those knobbly joints.

Reaching the bar, Zoro leaned against the counter, boredom reflecting in his every move as Sanji tapped the man awake. The man shook his head and tried to squint through his alcohol ridden vision, in a poor attempt to glare at the cook.

"Hey bub. Where is Bellamy?"

A grin cracked on the man's face as he tried to take in Sanji's appearance before he turned to the crowd,"Oi fellas! This blondie here is asking if he can meet Bellamy. Should we let him?"

Silence followed the words for a second before everyone started laughing their asses off, some of them shouted insults while some others jeered on them. Zoro stood behind Sanji, not caring to move from his casual stance; he didn't need to. The people had already pissed them off more that they needed to and it didn't matter how they behaved now, they weren't going to escape their wrath. Sanji chuckled dryly as he joined in the laughter of the crowd and blew out the cigarette smoke and snuffed out the stick on the overflowing ashtray. Zoro couldn't help the grin that spread across his face as he watched what happened next in slow motion.

Sanji raised his leg, the knee parallel to his chest as he halted a moment before driving it into the man's neck with enough force to send him crashing into the wooden bar and through it, wrecking the counter and sending splinters flying in all the directions. The man plopped to the ground unconscious and bleeding, his face disfigured due to the blow.

Sanji turned back to the now silent crowd again, "There was some confusion." He said, his voice polite and humble, as if he was apologizing for bumping into a person. "We didn't request a meeting. We simply demanded it. Now, let me repeat," He pulled out a new stick and lighted it with his lighter, "Where is Bellamy?"

In the silence, the sound of the curtain being pulled back echoed in the room and the couple turned to see a tall broad chested man emerging from behind, his steroid boosted muscles barely hidden by his tattered shirt. He had a bandage around his dirty blond head, no doubt to heal the wound Chopper inflicted the day before. He looked, to put it in simply, pathetic and like a total asshole. He looked, like Bellamy.

It was obvious Bellamy recognized them, if the leer was anything to go by. The last time Zoro had seen him, the blond and his gang was beating the shit out of him. Well, Zoro was letting him beat him up. Nami still didn't understand why Luffy demanded they not fight that time long ago, but Zoro understood.

Sometimes, it's just not fucking worth it.

Zoro wasn't there when Luffy beat Bellamy up some time later. He heard all about it, though. Luffy thought there were some redeeming qualities about Bellamy, but it was certain for now his friend was wrong. A rare moment, really. And Zoro wasn't planning on poking him with it.

Bellamy was fucking trash, and Zoro would treat him like one.

"You're looking for me, blondie?" Bellamy sneered, "Well, here I am."

"Yes," Sanji said, unveiled disgust dripping from the word. "I see that. Seems Chopper really did a number on you. I won't be as lenient as him though."

Zoro smirked, immediately noticing the subtle way Bellamy's men were trying to surround them… trying . Three from the back, one by the door, two to their left, and maybe some more hidden. Small fry, the lot of them. Pity there were so few, had there been more in number, it would be a challenge. No, maybe not even then.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Bellamy growled. "You're with that straw-hat idiot, right? I don't mess with him anymore, so back the fuck off."

"We know," Zoro piped in, his amusement doubling when he saw the wariness creeping up in Bellamy's eyes when they rolled to him. Oh, so he wasn't so stupid, huh? He could probably see Zoro wasn't a weakling, though he probably didn't hold the same respect for Sanji.

Well then, it was decided. Zoro would take care of the rest of the riffraff and Sanji could have Bellamy all to himself. That would teach the blond-haired idiot not to underestimate his husband. "We're not here for that."

"Then, what the fuck do you want?"

"Don't tell me you're really that clueless," Sanji sneered, "Don't you recognize me? After all, my children really do look a lot like me."

And there was the magic word. Bellamy's eyes widened, ashen fear marring his features, and Zoro barely had time to react before Bellamy took off running. Shit, didn't think the bastard would run away ! Damn, he overestimated him.

But Sanji clearly didn't, for Bellamy didn't even get to take three steps before he was falling facedown against the harsh wooden floor, an unmovable foot presses to the center of his struggling back.

"Where do you think you're going?" Sanji asked, a picture of coolness. "I already told you. I have no clemency for you."

Zoro chuckled. This is going to be so much fun.

"You don't know when to stop."

Smoker stood between the couple, smoking on the two cigars set between his teeth as he watched Tashigi and Coby arrest the beaten up gang. Scratch that. They were actually being admitted to the hospital before being arrested.

"We told you, we did nothing. Those idiots were fighting amongst themselves and we called you." Sanji puffed out the smoke from his bruised lip, the lip he bruised by punching himself so that it looked like he was a victim. Leave it on the blond to manipulate the situation.

Smoker snorted "Yeah, this is me believing you. Just why do we have to hospitalize them every time?"

"Won't happen next time." Zoro grunted from his other side, a satisfied smirk placed on his face as he saw a bawling Bellamy being pulled into an ambulance.

"Like hell it won't."


	7. Chapter 7

Sanji was in his element.

Well, he was always in his element but when it came to cooking and photography, he was successful in standing out as a professional genius. He learnt cooking from his father and the photography used to be a hobby that later turned into his job. He was a freelance photographer, most of his pictures went on his online blog and he was asked to photograph models all the time. 'Humans of New World' was also owned by him and it was surprising how many people followed it.

But despite his talent and love for photography, his first love blossomed in the kitchen. Perhaps it was hereditary, the passion for the culinary arts. There was just something about the inner peace found inside the kitchen, about watching his friends' and family's faces bloom with happiness as they tasted something Sanji had created with his own two hands. He loved that feeling of warmth, the whole action of getting together around the dinner table to enjoy time together.

And now, he had children of his own to pass that passion on.

He glanced at Hitomi and smiled. She had walked inside the kitchen asking to help; at first, Sanji had been a little apprehensive. He wasn't used to getting help in the kitchen and, honestly, he preferred to work alone. That was one of the biggest reasons why he hadn't gone into professional cooking. Chefs needed to be able to work in teams, often delegating jobs to the rest of the line cooks, and Sanji had never been good at that. But Hitomi looked so hopeful and eager that he really couldn't find it in him to deny her simple request.

"We're going to make a vegetable soup," Sanji told her. "Why don't you grab them from fridge and start washing them?"

"Okay." Hitomi beamed and hurried to the fridge. Sanji handed her a large pot and she busied herself with filling it with potatoes, carrots, squash, tomatoes, leeks, cabbage, onions, and zucchini. Sanji kept an eye on her as she grabbed the step tool to reach the sink and started diligently washing the multiple vegetables. Sanji was preparing ham as the main dish, a favorite both of his and Zoro. They rarely agreed on anything and though Zoro preferred rice and Sanji fish, they both could agree that ham tasted pretty damn good.

Preparing ham was already second nature to him, though, so he could afford to pay more attention to Hitomi than to his own hands. There was something bothering him about watching her, but he couldn't quite pin-point what it was. She was concentrating hard, biting her lower lip as her small hands thoroughly washed the vegetables from any grit or dirt. Sanji bought his groceries at the local farmer's market, so everything was naturally grown and often sold to him fresh from the soil. Yeah, sellers washed them, too, but Sanji liked the freshness that came from buying straight from the farmer.

He stopped, freezing as his eyes caught something his mind wasn't processing correctly. He stepped closer to Hitomi, his eyes on her hands. And then, he noticed what was wrong.

"Hitomi," he said gently, taking another step towards her. "How did you get these?"

He touched her hands as he spoke, tracing the thin, white scars on her fingers. They were familiar, for he had the same scars on his own fingers. They were the type of scars that came from working in the kitchen, usual for a chef. But unlike Hitomi, Sanji didn't get them until he was twelve, when his father first allowed to him to touch a knife.

"Oh…the people we stayed with used to give us vegetables and fruits to cut. Andrian has them too." She looked up at him and smiled, "But towards the last month in the previous house, I got almost no cuts. I got better. So there won't be any need to worry!" She grinned at him again and again, Sanji was a little terrified by how off it looked!

Making a four year old cut vegetables. The anger knobs in his brain were being tweaked with again and it took a lot of strength for him to not let it surface. He held Hitomi by her shoulders and looked her in the eye, "Hitomi. I want you to promise me to never touch a knife again! Not unless I tell you to. Alright?"

Her visible eye widened and she nodded hesitantly, "Did I… do something wrong, Dad?"

Sanji smiled...well, hopefully it looked like a smile. He really wasn't feeling like smiling right now, but he didn't want to show his anger in front of Hitomi. "Of course you didn't," he said softly. "Kitchen knives aren't toys, so children shouldn't touch them. But it isn't up to a child to prevent that, but rather the adults in charge of them. You didn't do anything wrong, Hitomi. It was the people who allowed you to touch a knife that were in the wrong."

Hitomi nodded solemnly, eyes wide and lips pressed thinly. "Okay, Dad."

Sanji nodded and tried to diffuse the heavy atmosphere. "You did a very good job cleaning these," he said brightly, nodding to the vegetables. "Now, why don't you go relax with your brother while I finish up here?"

Hitomi nodded again, and to Sanji's surprise, gave him a tight hug before she jumped off the foot stand and ran off towards her room. Sanji stared after her, then looked down at his hands. He followed the deepest scar, the one that ran from the inside of his thumb all the way to the center of his palm. That happened when he was fifteen, trying to skin a fish fillet. He was distracted and he didn't know how to hold the fillet correctly. Just a slip of the knife, and he had cut deep enough that he was able to see bone. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he had been scared. He'd even cried, mostly out of frustration and anger, but he had shed tears anyway. It had been a horrible experience, from having to go to the hospital for stitches, to being unable to use his hands until the wound healed.

And he had been fifteen.

To just think that something like that could've happened to Hitomi at her young age...no, he didn't want to think about it. She was safe now and that's all that matters. He would make sure she never gets harmed again.

As Hitomi made her way to her brother, she couldn't help but feel happy about the warmth that had slowly started to envelope her heart. She liked Sanji. She liked him a lot. He had accepted Andrian and her without any hesitation and the it had looked like he was willing to leave his husband if it came to it. Thankfully, it didn't. Zoro was so understanding and had accepted them too. He looked intimidating, with a scar on his face and the body builder physique. Not to forget his hair were green . But the kids had enough experience to know that beauty and looks do not define what a person was like on the inside.

When she reached the living room, she stopped on her track, the site before her taking her by surprise. Andrian was sleeping with his head on Zoro's lap and the mossman was asleep himself, his head resting on the edge of the sofa and hand laying on Andrian's shoulder. She smiled when she noticed that the usual scowl that her brother sported was replaced by a soft smile and the tenseness in his shoulders was relaxed, as were his brows… He worried too much. And ever since they had come here, granted it had only been three days, Andrian's walls had started to fall apart.

She didn't have the heart to stir them awake so she decided to grab one of the comics they got and try reading them. Zoro had helped her read some yesterday after they came back in the afternoon. Sanji had rushed to the washroom, avoiding to meet them but when he came back, it was impossible to ignore the bruise on his lower lip. But noone commented on it and Sanji seemed relieved, serving them with icecream and cake.

She grabbed TinTin and the Seven Crystal Balls and walked back to the kitchen. Sanji would definitely be able to help her a little in between, right?

"Andrian and papa are sleeping." she spoke to Sanji's back as he worked, not realising when his daughter walked in. He turned around and a huge grin broke his face when he saw her looking at him with hopeful eyes and the comic in her hand. "Can I read in here?"

"You don't have to ask, my dear!" Sanji bent down and set her on the counter where he could see her and gave her a tiny kiss on her nose, making her smile wider. "It's your home too!"

A few minutes alone had given him enough time to calm his nerves and let his mind wander back to his soup. It was almost done. He just needed to add the spices.

"Hitomi, pass me the salt and ground pepper, please sweety."

She did as she was asked and Sanji added the required amount to the stock and left it to boil. He checked on the ham in the oven, it was the final glaze so he could see the beautiful sheen.

He kept working in the kitchen with practiced ease and lithe movements. Hitomi asked him what she didn't understand in the comic and kept passing him the different spoons and spices he asked for. Sanji watched as her eyes gleamed every time he did a trick with his knife or asked her to help. She seemed happy to be in the kitchen, snacking on the fruits Sanji cut for her, looking at him cook and listening to him intently when he explained a part of the comic to her.

The last thing to prepare was the dessert, individual molten lava cakes. He'd calculated the amount of flour, sugar, chocolate and eggs needed beforehand and gone to shop for the groceries earlier that day. Andrian had accompanied him, giving Sanji a good excuse to shop for new clothes for the kids as well. They just couldn't have enough clothes.

He bent and opened the storage cupboard underneath the counter and huffed as he pulled out the flour and sugar.

An hour later, the cakes were set in the oven and Sanji was hurrying Hitomi to her room to get her dressed for the night. He kicked Zoro awake on his way over, ordering the groggy man to dress up Andrian. Sanji had deciphered in the past two days that Hitomi hated frilly stuff. Which is why he picked out a very subtle frock for her at the store. He showed it to her and the apprehension was clear on her face.

"Do I have to wear it?" she pouted, her visible eye pleading to Sanji who almost said no.

"Just try it on once, sweety. if you don't like it, you can shift to your overalls."

"okay…" she hesitated a little before taking the dress from Sanji and was standing in front of the mirror two minutes later with her father talking too fast to her, apparently trying to convince her to stick with the dress.

Well… she did look okay… the frock was light purple - not pink - and there were no frills. She did notice a pair of frilly stockings that came with the dress but Sanji wasn't asking her to wear it and she was thankful for that. The dress wasn't too short either.. it brushed the top of her knees and was sleeveless.

"... wear it?" Sanji finished the long explanation and asked her the question.

"It's…. Not bad." she muttered, "I'll wear it."

The glee on Sanji's face made her grin and she laughed when he all but hugged her and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Now… you need a last minute trim."

Her eyes widened as she stared at her overjoyed father and couldn't say no.

Meanwhile, Zoro was staring at a pile of shirts, pants and jeans, his brain trying to mentally piece together a combination that would look good for a dinner party as Andrian stood on their bathroom sink counter in his underwear, waiting patiently for Zoro to choose.

Clothing was important. It was alright if Zoro was going to take his time in selecting a combination that would make him look as classy as his other dad looked.

But Zoro didn't care about classiness. For him it was all about comfort. So he picked up a pair of black jeans and a grey tee from the mix and handed them to Andrian who eyed it for a second before accepting them. He was about to button them up when Zoro realised that his cook would kill him, if he made Andrian wear something that casual.

He was about to ask him to change when Sanji entered and kicked him out, yelling at him about knowing nothing. Zoro grumbled to himself, accepting defeat where he knew he had lost and slipped on the shirt Sanji had placed on their bed.

His husband knew him well enough that the shirt was just a simple v-neck, nothing too fancy yet still looked good paired with his most comfortable pair of black jeans. Sanji would probably take a while with Andrian, so Zoro decided to sneak some snacks from the kitchen before Luffy could come in and consume everything like the black hole that he was.

He was distracted, however, by the sight of Hitomi sitting on the sofa with her legs pressed tightly together, pulling at her dress. It was kinda pretty, and they looked comfortable enough but she looked uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" he grunted, surprising her.

Hitomi looked up with wide eyes, and immediately moved her hands away from her lap. "Nothing."

Zoro frowned. "Sure didn't look like nothing. Just tell me what's wrong."

Hitomi hesitated, biting her lip. Zoro followed the motion with veiled concern. He wanted the kids to grow used to them already. He wanted Hitomi and Andrian to be open with him, to not be afraid to speak their minds. Zoro was not a big fan of hesitancy and pulled words - he had fallen in love with Sanji , the man was poignant and stubborn as hell - but he understood the need for patience.

"If you don't like it, just change into something else," Zoro offered, but Hitomi quickly shook her head.

"No, I like it. It's just...it keeps riding up when I sit. I don't want anyone to see my... you know ."

Zoro smirked at the childish roundabout way of saying underwear and even with that, Hitomi was looking mildly embarrassed. He had never really paid attention to the fact that women's clothing could be uncomfortable. Nami really liked wearing skirts when she was younger, though she started wearing jeans a couple of years ago. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Brook kept asking to see her panties, though he doubted it. The man had ended up with a bruise every time he had asked.

So maybe she just grew tired of having to watch her steps.

"So put on some shorts, then," Zoro finally answered, shrugging.

"I can't," Hitomi insisted. "Dad really wanted me to wear this dress, and it's not like I hate it. It actually has it's charm."

"Well, how about those black shorts you bought to sleep in?" Zoro wondered. "You can wear them underneath and no one will know."

"Can I really?" Hitomi looked up at him with wide eyes.

Zoro snorted. "Sure. It's not a big deal. I won't tell anyone."

"You promise?"

Zoro blinked and scratched his head, one brow arching without him even realizing it, "Uh, yeah. I promise."

"Okay." Hitomi practically jumped off the sofa and ran to her bedroom, but not before giving Zoro a tight hug around his knees.

He stared after her, surprised by the sweet gesture, then remembered his original goal of sneaking some food and headed back to the kitchen, a soft smile tugging on his lips.

Kids!

As usual, everything was perfect. The food was cooked and set in the microwaveable serving set. Ham, soup, chicken wings, pasta, noodles, meatballs, manchurian and the lobster salad.

There was a complete counter dedicated to various booze and soft drinks. Zoro noted that most of the booze was light. Obviously they didn't need heavy drinks on the first night the kids met everyone, they wanted them to like it here, not get freaked out and run.

He was about to choose what to eat when he heard sandals clomping on the floor and he turned around to see Hitomi grinning at him widely as she walked upto him, back to being carefree. Zoro couldn't help but return the grin, "You look very sweet, Hitomi."

He saw her cheeks and ear turn red and chuckled, turning in the direction of the drinks. "Do you want a cold drink? Fanta or pepsi or…?" his voice trailed off and Hitomi nodded earnestly, looking the display in interest as well. Zoro picked a drink and handed it to her which she sipped on happily.

Life had seemed very normal till four days ago. Zoro had a career, he had a husband whom he loved and returned his feelings, he had friends which were practically family… everything had seemed alright and going well. But every time he saw Hitomi or Andrian smile or laugh, he felt his own heart swell with unexplained joy and things just seemed better now. Of course lookout-sex was now going to be a part of his life but he wouldn't mind adjusting to it for the kids.

He felt like he was being watched and looked up from Hitomi to see Sanji at the kitchen entrance, torso resting on the frame and grinning at him. Andrian, on whom Sanji did a job better than he ever could have, walked into the room towards his sister, avoiding Zoro's gaze.

"Are you guys ready?" Sanji asked softly, looking at his children.

"Yes," Hitomi said firmly, nodding her head and glancing at Andrian, who only shrugged.

"They're great people." Sanji smiled as the doorbell rang, then grimaced when Luffy's joyful shouts followed. "Though a bit childish," he added, walking back to greet their guest. "Luffy, you moron!" he shouted and Zoro snorted.

"Let's go, guys. Before your father kills somebody."

Hitomi and Andrian hurried after him, walking closely but behind him. They walked into the living room and Zoro was not surprised by the sight that greeted him. Luffy was already seated on the carpeted floor, playing with his Xbox One, a present from Sanji, with Usopp and Chopper by his sides, waiting for their turn. Nami and her girlfriend Khalifa had taken over the loveseat, sitting close together and smiling up at Sanji while he praised their beauty and whatnot. Sometimes, when she was annoyed, Khalifa still liked to threaten him with sexual harassment lawsuits, but they all knew she didn't mean it.

Well, at least they hoped she didn't mean it.

Ace had taken over the loveseat's armrest, typing furiously on his phone with what Zoro recognized as a perverted grin on his face. Sanji made the same type of grin when he was in the mood, or right after a mind-blowing orgasm, courtesy of Zoro. They didn't look as good on Ace as in on Sanji, though.

Robin was talking quietly with Brook on the sofa, that tiny smile on her lips telling Zoro that she was having a rather morbid conversation with their mortician friend. Brook was the only one who shared her morbid sense of humor (though Zoro sometimes found it funny, too), but Brook was also silly and perverted, traits shared by Franky...who just happened to be missing.

"Where's Franky?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, he's running a bit late," Robin answered, looking up at him mid-conversation. "He said..."

Now, it is necessary to mention that Zoro had never seen Robin look surprised. He had seen her smiling, laughing, annoyed, and scared...but never surprised. So it was really quite satisfying for Zoro to see her eyes widen with surprise, her mouth slightly agape, as her gaze fell down to Andrian and Hitomi. She quickly recovered of course, but Zoro was still going to count it as a win.

Robin's cut-off sentence caught the attention of the others; Zoro felt Hitomi slip her small hand into his, squeezing tightly (though Zoro hardly felt it), as all eyes fell on her and her brother.

The sounds of Luffy's avatar dying on the screen went unheard and the multiple notifications of incoming messages went unread as the D brother stared at the children.

Sanji cleared his throat, startling everybody (except Chopper, Nami, and Khalifa) as he walked up to Zoro and the kids. He took a hold on Andrian's hand, bringing him forward a little, slowly, so he couldn't hide behind Zoro, and placed a soft hand on Zoro's shoulder, who was holding on to Hitomi.

"Well...I...this is Andrian and that is Hitomi." Sanji smiled down at the twins, though Zoro could read the nervousness he was trying to hide. But his husband still looked up resolutely and firmly finished his introduction. "They are my... our children."

The silence was almost deafening. Sanji could feel Andrian's clammy hand gripping him tightly, and Zoro was surprised to feel Hitomi's grip increase in strength. He looks down at her, taking in her wide, scared eyes, and picked her up. Hitomi didn't even seem to notice, her eyes still on their guests, but her arms automatically wrapped around his neck.

He turned to look back at the stunned crowd and scowled deeply. This was bad. The kids would freak out if this went on for another minute and the way Sanji was shuffling his legs lightly next to him meant that he was getting wairy too.

And then, surprising everyone, Nami swooped down and smacked Luffy and Ace in the back of their heads, somehow managing the feat despite the fact the brothers are on opposite ends of the loveseat, making Luffy sprawl out on the carpet and Ace fall off the armrest.

"You're creeping the kids out," she snapped. "Is that any way to greet someone?"

"Ow, Nami, that hurt!" Luffy whined, rubbing the back of his head.

"Shit...I mean, shoot," Ace quickly corrected, wincing when Sanji shot daggers at him with his gaze. Out of the three brothers, Ace is the one with the best manners. Though admittedly, Sabo was almost never around since he traveled a lot so Zoro didn't know him as well as he knew the other two. Ace was a complete flirt and a total party animal but he still had the manners of a classy, high-profile gentleman and could woo anyone he wanted to, no matter how uptight the person was.

"Wow, they totally look like you, Sanji!" Luffy exclaimed, quickly recovering from Nami's admonishment and bounced up to stare at the twins closely. "They're like mini-versions of you! Oi, can you cook?"

Hitomi blinked, surprised by the sudden question. "I'm five . I can't even reach the stove."

The others laughed as Luffy's face fell, and the tension seemed to leave the room completely.

"Even if they can't cook, look at them," Ace gushed. "They're adorable . Aren't you a handsome fella?" he asked, smiling down at Andrian.

"Um...thank you," Andrian muttered, blushing from the tip of his ears to the back of his neck.

Sanji beamed and patted Andrian's head. "He's as handsome as his father."

"Screw that," Ace scoffed. "He's like a thousand times more precious. You're going to have the girls eating out of the palm of your hand, kiddo."

Andrian looks at Ace with wide, shining eyes before his gaze unconsciously moved to Robin, before he blushed even redder and hid his face behind Sanji's leg.

Khalifa and Nami made aww noises and Robin's cheeks flushed a light pink. "Oh my, my," she said, smiling. "How can a lady deny a gaze like that? C'mere, sweetheart."

Andrian looked at Sanji for permission and when his father only nodded encouragingly, he hurried to Robin's side and easily smiled at her, wide and bright like his father.

Zoro frowned; Andrian had never smiled at him, but he'd only known Robin for all of two minutes and she got a smile like that ? Well, what did he expect? He's Sanji's son, after all. Guess they should be prepared to have girls and candle lit dinners at home ten year from now.

"Ne, Hitomi? Do you wanna play Black Ops with us?" Luffy seemed ready to grab Hitomi out of Zoro's arms.

"I've never played it before…" Hitomi sounded uncertain as she glanced at the screen behind Luffy.

"That's not a problem, we'll teach you!" Usopp grinned at her as he came to stand next to Luffy, "I'm Usopp, by the way. And this is Luffy, he eats a lot!" He pulled on Luffy's cheek who was smiling widely and nodding enthusiastically. "The lady with your brother is Robin and that guy is Ace, Luffy's brother. You seem to know Nami, she is sitting with her girlfriend, Khalifa." Hitomi looked at each person as Usopp introduced them, "The thin uncle is Brook and the guy who'll bust in here in an hour will be Franky. Oh and you know Chopper too, I guess?"

"Yes!" Hitomi smiled at the doc sitting next to Khalifa and he grinned and waved back, seeming a little irritated by how the officer was trying to cuddle him. Zoro stifled a laugh. Khalifa hated getting close to men but she never seemed to have a problem in doing just that with Chopper who in turn hated it when people did that to him (Zoro and Luffy were the exceptions of course).

"So, you wanna play?" Usopp asked her and Hitomi nodded her head vigorously, smiling so widely that you could count all her teeth.  
"Yes!"

Zoro set her down and the trio went to sit on the carpet with Luffy calling to Sanji to bring out the food already.

An hour later everyone had settled down. Franky had arrived and cried out of happiness and hugged the kids. Sanji had to hurry and free them. Now, he was drinking and singing along with Brook while Zoro grumbled at them. Nami, Khalifa, Ace and Luffy were talking to Andrian who seemed happy to sit on Khalifa's lap (if you went by the permanent blush on his face which was starting to make him look like a beetroot). Chopper and Robin were sitting on either side of Hitomi and were helping her finish the comic.

"... so if you put a knife through a dead man's stomach, the acid reflux will cause his body to sit up and the throat is parched with no suction movements, so the gas leaving the body will escape like a whistle and sound like a scream. There used to be an age when humans dug up graves just to kill a dead person and they did it in the middle of the night for added effect. It's quite amusing isn't it?"

Hitomi looked up at Robin with awe, her mouth agape in a reverent O and nodded as she took in the information with wide wondering eyes, while Chopper seemed ready to faint, the same way Andrian had when she bestowed him with her knowledge on what happened if you let your hair fall on your eyes. But, being the gentleman that he was, he had smiled at Robin meekly and waited patiently for someone to come rescue him.

Sanji was bustling around the house, he was either in the kitchen or serving in the living room. Both Franky and Zoro had been slipping cola to the kids when he wasn't around. They knew the cook wouldn't appreciate the kids drinking unhealthy drinks but they did it anyway.

"Dinner will be served in five minutes, idiots. My beautiful ladies, if you wish, you can take your seats, you do not need to wait around!" Sanji bowed to the ladies while the men glared at him. Of course the ladies would be getting the best of everything that he had cooked.

When the blond disappeared into the kitchen, Zoro followed him there and leaned in close to him as he worked on the final touches to his food, a small smile on his lips as he gave Zoro a cursory glance.

"They seem to really like the kids, cook."

Sanji sighed and nodded in agreement, "They do. I didn't realise I was worried about that! Nami didn't take it so well and…"

"That's because she thought you had abandoned them," Zoro snorted. "You know how protective she is of children."

"Yeah, you're right," Sanji murmured.

"I love it when you say that." Zoro grinned and wrapped his arms around Sanji's waist as the blond turned to face him and rested his chin on Sanji's shoulder.

"Don't get so cocky," Sanji chided, "It's not a good look on you."

"Liar," Zoro whispered, his tone sending a soft tingle down Sanji's spine, before he leaned back to kiss the cook softly, not giving him a chance to reply.

Sanji hummed and melted into it, opening his mouth thoughtlessly to deepen it and closing his eyes in the process. He got his arms up and around Zoro's neck, enjoying his presence and felt the warmth settle back in his heart.

Alas though, these moments seemed to be short lived since the past few days and they both were startled apart by the loud shout of "Foooooood!".

"Goddamn it, Luffy!" Zoro yelled, pouting slightly and resting his head on Sanji's shoulder who laughed heartily and swept a hand through his hair.

"Get everyone around the table; I'll bring the food out," Sanji said and Zoro grumbled his agreement, stalking off to the living room to follow his husband's orders.

Out of all of their friends, Sanji and Zoro definitely had the biggest dining room. Because of Sanji, most of their get-togethers occurred in the Roronoa-Black household, so it made sense for them to own a dinner table big enough to accommodate all of their friends.

Also, because of Luffy, Sanji had gotten into the habit of preparing a lot of food. Sanji never complained, and Zoro had the inkling of suspicion that he actually liked the excuse to spend the whole day in the kitchen. Not that they would ever tell Luffy; if they did, they would never be able to get their friend to go home.

It took a flurry of activities and Nami smacking Luffy a couple of times, for the dinner table to be set. Much to Sanji's disappointment, Andrian had opted to sit between Khalifa and Ace while Hitomi was seated between Robin and Nami.

"...I'm telling you, kid! Stick with me, and you'll go far," Ace was telling Andrian, "It doesn't matter if you're going after girls or boys, my skills don't know gender. With your dad's good-looks and my know-how, the sky's the limit."

"Stop trying to turn my kid into a casanova, Portgas," Zoro snapped as he took his seat next to where Sanji usually sat and waited for him to join then.

Ace's reply was cut off by Chopper's shriek when Sanji sat opposite to him, "Sanji! What happened to your lip?"

"Ah!" Sanji's hand automatically went to the bruise on his lip which was, until now, well hidden by his hair. He cursed himself for punching himself yesterday. It was a feat that the children did not question him but now that Chopper saw it, there was no way he could get out of the situation. He coughed uncomfortably and threw Zoro a side glance, "I fell yesterday. That's all."

"No… You were hit." Andrian said from when he sat three seats away from his father.

"Hit?" Sanji looked at his son as he spoke, "What makes you say that, Andrian? I fell. Why would anybody hit me?"

The boy shrugged and Sanji decided to drop the topic at that. He noticed that Chopper wanted to say something but probably held himself back in front of the kids. "Well, dig in everyone! What are we waiting for?"

Everyone murmured enthusiastically as they turned back to their food. It was nothing new for them if the couple had gotten into a fight. They knew they didn't have to worry. Sanji looked at everyone patiently, not touching his plate, waiting as usual to see how his food made others feel.

The first bite was taken.

And then there was silence.

Hitomi paled where she sat between the two ladies and her eye widened in horror at the very same moment that Luffy let out a laugh, "This food tastes very different Sanji! Is it a new recipe? It's really good!"

Sanji's mind reeled as he turned to look at his husband and see that he was chewing his food slowly but avoiding his gaze. The grimace on his face was enough of a clue for Sanji to know something was wrong. He quickly grabbed a small bite off his own plate and almost gagged when overwhelming sweetness hit his tastebuds.

"I'm so sorry!" Hitomi suddenly exclaimed, somehow suddenly looking smaller as all eyes turned to her. "I...I think I gave you sugar...when you asked for salt...I'm so sorry." Her voice was barely a whisper as she finished, eyes downcast and shoulders drawn in.

"It's tastes like crap," Zoro suddenly grunted and Hitomi flinched. "But how's that any different from your usual crap, love cook?"

"Oi, fu….udge you," Sanji snapped, blushing when his insult fell flat.

"I really like it!" Chopper suddenly piped in, his joy spread clearly all over his face. "It tastes just like candy!"

"You know, when I was little, I used to make spaghetti and sugar all the time!" Usopp boasted "It was so delicious, I was asked to cook it for the Queen of England! She absolutely loved it!"

Andrian looked at Usopp skeptically when he said that, doubting the man's words.

"There really isn't any way sugar can taste bad," Nami agreed.

The others piped in words of agreement and dinner resumed normally. Sanji stared fondly at his friends, glad that no one was making a huge deal out of Hitomi's mistake. He noticed that she still looked a bit nervous, but it was only natural to feel that way in a group of strangers. At least, this mistake wasn't as bad as when Sanji had added wasabi to a recipe thinking it was guacamole. Now that was painful.

Luffy, Chopper, and Ace ended up eating the most; Luffy because he was a glutton, Chopper because he honestly liked the sweetness, and Ace because he was just too polite to decline food or break Hitomi's heart ( and he was a glutton). Zoro didn't eat as much as he usually did, but he still finished his plate.

The strange taste of the food was quickly forgotten as everyone finished their dinner with the perfect choco lava cakes and conversations picked up. Even though they were not as close as they used to be when they were younger (back then nobody really had families or partners, so they had time to spare), they still liked to get together to catch up on their lives.

And when time came for everyone to leave, they all did so with promises to come back soon.

"Make sure you cook this again, Sanji!" Luffy said before he left with Ace. "It was yummy."  
"Thank you for the food," Ace said politely. "Andrian, I'll see you around."

"Good-bye." Andrian said quietly.

Sanji frowned. Andrian was looking a little upset, like something is bothering him. "Wanna help me clean up?" Sanji asked, thinking of distracting him.

"Sure," Andrian shrugged and moved to start picking up the dirty plates.

Sanji shared a look with Zoro, who was saying goodbye to Franky and Brook, then moved to help his son.

"Thanks for coming, Franky," Zoro looked at the taller man. "I know your job keeps you pretty busy."

"It's cool, Zoro-bro," Franky said, placing a heavy hand on Zoro's shoulder. "You have some cute kids there with you."

"Yeah, they're...amazing," Zoro said, his gaze unintentionally flicking to Hitomi, who was still sitting at the table, swinging her small legs since she was too short to reach the floor.

"She seems upset," Brook commented. "Perhaps she's worried about her small mishap?"

Zoro frowned, "The sugar thing? It was nothing."

Brook and Franky shared a look and Zoro frowned. Those two were the oldest in their group, even older than Robin (though Zoro has never dared to call Robin old ever since Usopp made that mistake a couple of years ago when she first turned thirty), so sometimes, they made Zoro feel like an ignorant kid. He doubted that it was intentional. He couldn't deny that when he looked past their silliness and pervertness, both of them were really mature.

"Perhaps you should still talk to her," Franky suggested. "Children don't understand subtlety, Zoro. You have to spell things out for them."

"And they are also very bad at keeping secrets, especially that young," Brook added. "You should listen to what they say, no matter how unimportant it may seem."

"What do you mean?" Zoro asked, his frown deepening. "I don't understand subtlety either, so just spell it out."

Brook sighed and shook his head. "We know you and Sanji were in a fight because we know what injuries look like. Sanji was punched, there's no denying that. But how could a child know what type of wound a punch leaves?"

Zoro stared at Brook for a few seconds because, damn! He was right! Why hadn't he thought of that?

"And bro. She hasn't said anything since we started eating. Nami and Robin were worried too, before they left. You really need to talk to them."

Zoro nodded absent mindedly and he glanced at Hitomi again, realization dawning on him too late. She did look more let down than a situation like this should make a person.

"I'll… We'll talk to them. Thanks!" He smiled at them and the two returned it before exiting.

After everyone had left, Zoro approached his daughter and sat on the chair next to hers. She looked at him sideways and it pained Zoro to see that she looked scared. He scooted his chair closer to her and kept a hand on her back, "Hitomi, are you alright?"

Hitomi looked up at him again and the fear in her eyes was replaced, ever so slightly, with doubt. Her eye was searching his and he did all he could to lay himself bare for her. When she spoke, her voice quivered.

"I didn't mean to give dad sugar. It was a mistake." she stated.

"We know that. You don't have to worry about it…"

"But he is angry with me. He didn't talk to me once since that happened and he asked Andrian for help." Her eyes started to fill with tears as she spoke and Zoro suddenly found himself losing his own composure.

"Hitomi. Listen, it's not like that. We just didn't think it was that big a deal. And it isn't. Why are you so worried about such a thing?"

Hitomi looked at Zoro with doubt again, her eyes leaking tears and her nose blocking up. Zoro was a good person… He accepted them. He… made her laugh and called her sweet. She could tell him, couldn't she?

Sanji stared at his son as he snatched yet another plate from his hand and started scrubbing it furiously. The boy was five but his hands seemed so used to the job that the anger that had ebbed away in the evening started to return.

"Andrian, just what is going on? I asked for your help. Why are you not letting me do anything in my own kitchen?"

Andrian paused in his work to glare at him and Sanji was a little taken aback by the fury in them.

"She made a mistake. Alright?" He snapped and Sanji had no idea what his son was talking about, "But the food still tasted good and it looked like everyone enjoyed."

Sanji stared at him for a few seconds, his brain working unusually slow to finally catch up to what Andrian was saying.

"Yes, Andrian. It's alright. It's not a big deal."

"Then why are you angry with her?" He almost screamed at his father and Sanji just stared at him, frozen in place. Angry? He hadn't been angry, not the slightest bit. "You didn't talk to her and when they all left you didn't even ask for her to help! You asked me!"

"Andrian, I.."

"I told you when we met that if you didn't want us, all you had to do is tell us. We would go back to the foster homes. This is not what we want! We didn't run away for this!"

"Run away?" Sanji snapped back, "What were you running from?" He locked eyes with his son whose eye went wide.

"They.. The people we were living with. We have had enough. We have been from one foster home to another. Every one of them made us work or starved us or hit us if we did something wrong. So we ran. We didn't want that life and when Hitomi saw you she just thought you would be different because you were probably our real father! But you're so much worse than them because at least with them, we knew they were bad people. But you...you act to be good and you make us think everything is going to be alright. And you're nice and you have a pretty home and you're… not rude when you talk to us so everything feels fine. But it's not. Because we don't know what to do, what's going to make you angry and leave us or hit us. It was a mistake, Hitomi just made a small mistake. She doesn't deserve..."

Sanji's body acted on its own, walking over to his son and wrapping his arms around the small frame. Andrian stared at Sanji's shirt for a second before he started beating his fists all over the man. Any place he could reach, as hard as he could beat.

"Don't do this...stop lying….stop acting like you care...please.."

Sanji stared blankly at the sink filled with soap water as his son tried to pinch and push him away. He couldn't process what he'd been told. His kids, made to work and beaten at the age where they should be playing and being loved.

He gulped down the lump in his throat and held on to Andrian, waiting for the kid to drain his energy and release the tension bottled up in the tiny body.

Zoro sat on the chair hugging Hitomi as she cried and hugged him back, her tears dampening his tee and her hold around his neck tighter than a snake's. He shushed in between her sobs and patted her head, trying to calm her down, but it was difficult.

He had never been good at comfort, it was one of the many things Sanji always griped him about. Zoro was rough, he was insensitive, and he was blunt. He couldn't read nuances and subtleties like Sanji could. He never knew the right thing to say.

And now...now was the worst possible time for him to feel anything other than rage. Hitomi's confession still rang in his ears, the tiny words and the fear in her voice like a vicegrip around his heart and already etched into his brain. He had never felt so useless, unable to do anything to comfort his daughter's horrible memories.

He didn't know what to do, but she was holding on to him so tightly, crying so hard, all he could think to do was to hold her back and let her know he was there.

"Everything is fine now," he whispered, the words sounding hollow even to his own ears. "It's okay. I'm here. It's going to be okay."

Sanji and Zoro held on, rooms apart, but the same feeling mirrored in their hearts. As Hitomi cried, seeking warmth and comfort, and Andrian sobbed, still afraid to believe that things could be okay, Sanji and Zoro held on. And together, they promised themselves, they promised each other, and they promised the small children in their arms, that they would protect them, even if it cost them their lives.


End file.
